#strawberryfairi

[strawberryfairi]

Synopsis✨: The story of how you catch heavy feelings for the hot photography student, Shuji Hanma…even though you already have the perfect (fake) boyfriend.

Pairings: Photography Student! Shuji Hanma X Dance Major! Black Fem 🤎 Reader (ANYONE CAN READ🧚🏾‍♀️) Content: Drama, lots of denial, angst, sneaky link, lots of cheating, mutual pining, unserious Shuji, controlling parents, forced relationships, romance, fighting, porn with a good plot vibes, intense sexual tension, etc (just find out the rest lol)

A MILE AWAY

2:27 ───ㅇ───── 4:09

♤ New Release! ♤

Chapters List; Ongoing! ♕ crossposted on Wattpad and recently Ao3

╔════ஓ๑♔๑ஓ═════╗ 1; Homecoming 返校 2; No Filter 无滤镜 3; Night Ride 夜骑 4; Mistakes 错误 5; SIN 罪 6: Fatigue 疲劳 7; Fake Date 约会 8; Stolen Away 偷偷溜走 9; Pain 疼痛 10; Allegations 指控

Last update: April 15, 2024

[strawberryfairi]

Synopsis✨: The story of how you catch heavy feelings for the hot photography student, Shuji Hanma…even though you already have the perfect (fake) boyfriend.

Pairings: Photography Student! Shuji Hanma X Dance Major! Black Fem 🤎 Reader (ANYONE CAN READ🧚🏾‍♀️) Content: Drama, lots of denial, angst, sneaky link, lots of cheating, mutual pining, unserious Shuji, controlling parents, forced relationships, romance, fighting, porn with a good plot vibes, intense sexual tension, etc (just find out the rest lol)

(A/N🧚🏾‍♀️: First chapter might be a lil boring, but the tea begins in chapter 2)

w.c: 4.4k💠 Released: Jan 5, 2024

Next Chapter Chapters Masterlist

1; HOMECOMING 返校

It's homecoming today. One of the most stressful but most exciting days in the entire school year. It serves as a debut of both the cheerleading and dance teams, and of course the football team. In your case, today will be your first homecoming as dance team captain and choreographer.

Your freshman year was grueling, but you dedicated almost all of your time and energy into forming a proper dance team with high respect and credibility with the help of your good friend from senior year in high school, Emma Sano. Now, in your sophomore year, the grind absolutely did not stop. You have a team full of twenty girls (including yourself and Emma) to lead, and today will prove to be the hardest list of tasks you've ever checked through so far in your life.

"Mornin' baby." Your boyfriend Ken murmurs groggily, leaning over you to gently kiss your warm cheek. You're both snuggled up together in his dorm suite bed, as you had stayed the night in his room per his request. You smile tiredly, turning over to face him. "Morning."

The two of you have been together for quite some time now, a good two years and eight months. Though those years may seem significant or like a milestone, the relationship has always been stagnant. A boring, straight line. You're boyfriend is sweet, kind, mostly all of the above, yet he's just...never really been right for you. Why not break up?

Well, your parents are the ones keeping you both from leaving each other. Your mom, a part of the administration of the university, and Ken's father, the football coach, famous for cultivating champion players that later move on to the NFL in the states by senior year came together with the plan for you two to date.

Why not just do your own thing and date who you want? Your mom had made it clear that if you don't keep up the charade of the perfect college girl with great grades and a boyfriend with a great future, you'd be out of the school in a heartbeat, and out of dance for good. She says you need to be perfect in every way in order to gain success, especially as a dancer, and being already in a relationship will keep you from getting distracted by other guys during your four years.

Same goes with Ken and what his dad told him. In their pursuit of star students they went and 'hooked you two up', completely ruining what could have been a good friendship and maybe even relationship had they not rushed it. But honestly, it's not the utter worst being with Ken, though you wish you had a say in the kind of guy you wanted for yourself. It's hard having to force out a genuine sounding 'I love you' every day, and especially, have sex with someone you don't even feel anything for. Nevertheless, the two of you equally sucked it up and learned to 'love' each other.

"Big day today. You ready?" Ken grins, looking down at you with an excited smile.

"Nooooo." You groan, pulling the blankets over your head and snuggling up close to Ken's chest.

"Nah, don't say that! This is our big moment; been workin' hard for this." He shakes his head, tugging the sheets off of your head.

"I'm so nervous, and it's gonna be so hard trynna get the girls focused. You know all people think about is sex and the afterparties on homecoming." You frown.

"You're a leader, babe, they'll listen to you. It's just as important for them as it is for you. They'll tighten up when it's game time." Ken assures, stroking your bare shoulders comfortingly. You sigh, trying to bask in this moment of peace before the chaos inevitably ensues.

"Did you know I was approach by those school newspaper folks you always rant about yesterday? Allegedly, I'll be interviewed today since this is such a 'pivotal moment for the university, as the first ever dance team will be involved in the homecoming night experience'." You chuckle, doing a faux reporter voice.

"Oohh shit, they got you too, huh?" He lets out a breathy chuckle, flipping over onto his back, taking you along with him to rest on his chest.

"They sure did. At least I know what I'm getting into thanks to you, Mr. Quarterback. Maybe I'll see you at the interview room?"

"Maybe, depending on what time they want us there. We got interviews at ten a.m." He shrugs.

You pout with a light huff. "Awww, ours isn't till one."

"We'll see each other tonight, baby. We'll have the whole night actually." He purrs suggestively, sliding both hands down your back and giving your ass a firm squeeze.

"Hey hey hey! None of that till later!" You giggle, pushing away form him to try and get out of his tight grip.

"Can't wait..." He grins.

💎

Interviewer: "Can you discuss your vision for the team's performance at homecoming? What elements or themes do you plan to incorporate?"

"Considering it's the first year, how do you plan to make the performance memorable and reflective of the team's identity?"

"As a new dance team captain, how will you inspire and motivate your teammates, especially considering the excitement and nerves associated with a debut performance?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"They threw out all kinds of questions I wasn't ready to answer!" You rant into the phone, plopping down onto the chair outside of the interview room.

"I told you. It's intense ain't it?" Ken chuckles on the other side.

"Yeah! I feel like they should've at least done like a pre-interview or a practice run. It was so hard trynna answer those questions right on the spot like that!" You whine, facepalming. You take a deep breath then exhale, calming yourself down so you wouldn't annoy Ken with a bunch of ranting.

"Ugh, sorry, I don't mean to throw you off. I know you're getting ready too. How's everything going?"

"I'm all good, babe. I just wanna get on the field already." He murmurs.

"Facts. That's exactly how I'm feeling. It's gonna feel amazing once it's all over." You nod, fiddling with your top unconsciously. You hear the coach yell out to Ken from in the background, urging him back.

"Hang on, I gotta go. I'll talk to you later, alright? Love you." He says abruptly.

"Oh ok. Love you!" You hang up with a little sigh, getting ready to go over into the next section of the day. Just a few more hours now until the game starts.

4 Hours Later

"GUYS!" One of your freshman girls, Himari hollered, bursting through the doors to the dance team dressing room. You and all the others who heard her paused your conversations, looking at her with the same confused expression.

"What's going on now, Himari?" You huffed with an exasperated sigh. You loved her, you really did, but damn she's always got something going on.

"My body glitter just broke and spilled all over the bathroom floor! I hate my life!" She wailed, slumping against the door behind her, sliding down dramatically.

"Oh shit..." You murmur with a heavy facepalm. The girls all gasp, rambling about how they'd be so pissed if that happened to them. You'd be pissed too not gonna lie, if your expensive ass Fenty Glow broke like that...oof, you'd be seething.

"Just like..lay some paper towels down over it or something until we can find someone to clean it." Emma tells her, putting her focus back on the final touches of her makeup. You didn't have time to solve not another issue, thankfully that was easily solved as one of the girls Reina just let her use some of her body glitter.

You're only half dressed right now and still need to do your makeup and hair with only forty five minutes left. Nude tights with your elastic ankle braces was all you had on, you're not eve sure if that could really count as half dressed. Hurriedly you strip out of your school hoodie, chest completely bare as you grab your costume tagged with your name from the long clothing rack.

The costume this year was ten thousand times better than last years, as this time you were able to utilize design student Takashi Mitsuya from the university across the way from yours. He absolutely slayed the outfits, bringing out exactly what you were imagining. Your school colors are black, white, and silver, so the main color of the costume is a shiny black with accents of silver. It's a bodysuit, long sleeved with the silver as sequins on the cuffs of the arms, neck, and around the legs. A large cut out on the left side of the stomach area is also outlined with the silver sequins. Simple, yet such an effective, sexy design.

When you finished changing you quickly got to work doing your makeup, sprawling your products out on the table next to Emma and plopping down into a seat, whipping out your beauty blender and brushes.

"Easy girl. We still have some time. You know you move fast." She says softly, checking out her makeup in the vanity. "I know, I know. I'll just feel better once I'm ready." You huff, priming your face before pumping some drops of foundation on your beauty blender.

For makeup everyone has a silver lid eyeshadow look with black winged eyeliner and small jewels lined across the liner, topped off with a nude pink lip. Your hair was simple, an afro that you picked out nice and big, your bangs slicked down like a headband so you could see while you dance.

After a bit over half an hour you along with all the girls were finally ready.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Alright y'all, when we get out there, it's complete focus. Lock the fuck in." You warn, tone dead serious. You and your team are huddled in a large circle near the entrance to the wide football field. It was almost time for your performance.

"Freshmen, bring your absolute A-game, y'all hear me?"

"Yes ma'am!" The answer back instantly.

"Now, it's time to stunt on those cheerleaders, okaaaay!" You beam, smiling wide enough to show off your single dimple on your left cheek. The girls cheered, laughing and making their little jokes and jabs at the cheerleaders.

The dance team vs. cheerleader rivalry had been going on ever since you started this program. Of course, the cheerleaders were always the number one attraction during homecoming and all other sports games, but now that you all came along, it's actually some competition for them. It boosts you up every time seeing them get flustered and annoyed when your girls and you steal the show. It's especially bad when the boys get involved.

"Let's line up!" You command, beginning the line while watching all the girls get into position behind you.

The announcer finally acknowledges the dance team, giving the queue for the lights to turn off throughout the stadium. The crowd hoots and hollers as the field goes black, save for the phone lights and moon shining down brightly.

You take a deep breath, steeling yourself and rapid heartbeat, strutting out onto the field already in 'character'. The girls follow behind you, all getting into your practiced formation, waiting for the music and lights to come on.

After the thirty second time frame is up, the music begins, starting with the newest hit by Nicki Minaj: Everybody. Lights come on right when you all strike the first pose, making the crowd go wild.

~Aint' gang if you let shit slide Ain't bad if you gotta dick-ride Big guns and a lotta zip ties Said she look like me, quit lyin'~

You begin dancing, a little solo moment during the intro as the girls hold their pose. When the beat drops the girls join in, all of you going full out. The energy is so high all throughout the stadium, just how you want it. Some folks in the stands along with the football players on your side were dancing along excitedly. So far it's a hit.

3rd Person POV

Shuji's canon camera snapped shot after shot, taking skillful, clear pictures of the dancers in front of him. This was a pretty big opportunity, seeing as only the top students are allowed to photograph for events like homecoming and school newspaper posts, important things like that.

He didn't necessarily consider himself a 'good student', he honestly wasn't, yet the faculty couldn't help but acknowledge his talent as a photographer, so they gave him this chance.

He'd deliver though, and turn up with better pictures than the three other students out here snapping away half-assed, hoping for a couple nice shots out of nearly a hundred. They don't know how to wait, but Shuji does. He has a natural talent for patience when it comes to finding the right moment. It's like he can see it coming, then he freezes time, capturing it in perfect quality and light.

Looking through the viewfinder, he adjusts the lens, preparing for a shot right on the soloist. Waiting a few seconds he watches her dance, capturing the exact moment he was waiting for. She spins then stops in the perfect pose, one hand on her hip while the other arm is extended outward, her hand in an elegant gesture. Her leg is extended a bit with her arm, the ball of her foot on the ground giving her leg a slight bend.

His brows raise slightly as he looks up from the camera.

Her solo continues for just a bit longer before the other girls join, but for some reason, Shuji's eyes are still stuck on that one girl. He takes a moment trying to figure out what exactly about her made him react like that. She's a great dancer for sure, her movements fluid, exact, and graceful; sexy. But that's to be expected of an aspiring professional. Maybe it's her overall look, deep brown skin, big hair, and a gorgeous toned body. She's a sight, something interesting enough to catch his attention.

He goes back and forth, watching then snapping, watching then snapping. Then the girl spins once again, this time bringing her left leg into the air. It felt like slow motion what happened to him. Her anklet, looking as if it practically slid off her small ankle, flies right towards him just a few feet away from her. Instinctively he catches it with one hand, the other steadily holding the camera.

It's a gold anklet, real gold it seems. A chain with little designs carved into it. A light smirk makes it's way onto his lips as he places the piece of jewelry into his pocket.

Reader's POV

The dance routine lasted a grand total of twenty minutes, full halftime, and by the end you all were rushing with adrenaline. There wasn't a single mistake, and the stands were hyped. You couldn't help but smile as you all gracefully walked off the field and onto your designated spot on the bleachers, the section to the left of the cheerleaders.

The main event for the dance team was over, and it felt like a huge weight had come off your shoulders. You inwardly thank God that everything went better than you'd imagined from morning to now. All that's left is your short routines throughout the game, similar to what cheerleaders do, just without all the pep and bows.

Now you could officially pay attention to the game, and your boyfriend as the night went on. Apparently, your school the Jaguars had started out losing to the Kings, at a four point deficit until they started catching up. They'd officially surpassed the Kings just minutes before your performance.

There's a clean cut negativity that wafts over to your side of the bleachers whenever you and the girls do your routine coming right from the cheerleader side.

They have a captain as well, an upperclassman named Cho. She's a junior, and a bitch. You remember spending your first semester trying to become her friend for a while, but for some reason that you no longer care to worry about, she just never liked you. Her attitude whenever you spoke to her was ridiculous, so after a while you just stopped.

It was childish to you, the whole dance team vs. cheerleader rivalry, but it's how it just has to be apparently. There's no option of peace and being friends, so if they want to start shit you and your girls will be the ones to shut it down with poise. You knew why Cho was so mad right now, giving you her best side eye as you danced.

The cheerleaders didn't get as big of a spotlight this year seeing as the halftime show was dedicated to your choreography. Cameras and eyes were all pointed to the dancers, only occasionally turning to snap some pictures of the girls routines.

Did you feel bad? Hell no. You worked way too hard to be pressed about some hatin' ass girls in the back.

The game lasted another hour and about a half until it was finally over, a win for the Jaguars! The crowd was going insane, all the players huddled on top of each other in a pile, smiles everywhere. You felt like you were in a movie. The day was finally over, for both you and Ken. When the huddle broke up you hopped over the bleachers and past folks cheering, Ken unsuspecting as his back was towards you.

"Aaaaahhh!" You squeal excitedly, jumping up and wrapping your arms around him from behind. Ken makes a noise of shock before he realizes it's you, turning around and hoisting you up in his arms. Without a word the two of you kiss, completely blocking out the rest of the world.

Your hands cup his sweaty face as you continue, putting all your energy into it to show how proud you were. It's moments like these where your relationship actually feels real. Sharing a large accomplishment together, kissing publicly as a means of showing each other just how happy you both were.

Ken pulls away, setting you back down on the ground with a wide, beaming smile. "We did it babe!"

One of Kenny's teammates rather obnoxiously breaks your little moment up before you could even speak. "We gotta celebrate, man! Let's get to that party!"

Ohhh yes, the party...

Honestly, you weren't really in the mood for any parties, not after all the work you had to do today. If you could have it your way, you'd be chilling out in either yours or Ken's dorm room, having a special, intimate night with just each other. But he really wasn't that kind of guy. When the people need him, he shows up, and after something a huge as homecoming, he'd for sure be getting wasted tonight.

"Imma go and get changed and stuff now, K? I'll meet you out here unless you're gonna head to the party with the boys?" You tilt your head to the side.

"Nah, I'll wait for you." He shakes his head, giving you a peck on the forehead before you run off into the changing room.

As you make your way down the hall towards the dressing rooms for cheerleaders and dancers, it's nothing but hollering and cheers same as outside. You shake your head with a grin, pushing open the doors to the dressing room.

"WOOOOOOOO!"

A good seven of your girls cheer as you walk inside. You all do a little celebratory dance together, posting on each of your instagram stories as well as the dance teams insta page that you run.

"I just wanted to say on behalf of all of us that we're so proud of you and all the work you've been putting in since last year. We wouldn't have been able to pull off such an amazing performance without you and your creativity." Emma says with a proud smile. Your heartstrings pull and tighten at her sweet, heartfelt words.

"Ugh, stooop!" You whine, pouting your bottom lip out.

"No it's true! We love you so much, and we're so glad to have you as captain. You're so hardworking and always want the best for us; you're the best." Himari chimes in, placing a hand on her chest as she starts to tear up.

"Y'all...I don't even know what to say. That is just so sweet. I love y'all so much. I wouldn't even have my dance team dream come true without y'all joining and supporting me in the first place. So really I should be thankin' y'all." You sniffle, vision blurring from the tears pooling in your eyes.

"Wait! We absolute cannot cry this makeup off!" Emma outbursts, making you all laugh in response. She was right though, not only was our makeup bomb, but it also took forever and a lot of work to do. No crying tonight!

You all break up the sappy moment, going and getting semi changed for the afterparty. It was a frat party, so it was gonna be huge. Not only would the football players be there, but the basketball and soccer boys would pull up too. As you grab your sweatpants, you freeze just before you could step in with your left leg.

Something was wrong, your gold anklet was missing.

You distinctly remember putting it on before the show. This anklet was special to you, it being  something that your mom gave you as a fourteenth birthday gift. It's real gold with intricate designs in the chain, simple but elegant, and beautiful. You wear it for every performance, almost like a good luck charm even though jewelry isn't advised.

You gasp, searching all over your little area, the clothing rack, and even Emma's stuff which is sat next to yours.

"Guys!" You call out. Everyone turns to you, confusion on their faces.

"Have you seen a gold anklet around? It's just a simple gold chain." You add, your tone worried as you frantically start searching through everyone's things.

"An anklet? I haven't seen anything." Is all that goes around as the girls help you search in confusion.

"No no no." You repeat to yourself, feeling tears start to prickle in your eyes all over again. It couldn't be gone, it just couldn't.

"Don't worry, just try to backtrack, ok? When did you last see it?" Emma asks, coming over to your side and helping you look.

"I remember puttin' it on before the game. I know for a fact I was wearing it." You shake your head, still rummaging around.

"It might've come off at some point during the game..." She says.

"No, not on that big ass field, it could be anywhere! What if someone stepped on it?!" You ramble, getting all worked up and upset all over again. Emma gives you an apologetic look, unsure herself really of what to say or do to make you feel better about this. You both knew it was highly likely lost in the sauce, trying to find that thing out there is like searching for a needle in a haystack.

"I'm sorry girl." She says softly, placing a hand on your arm comfortingly. You let out a frustrated sigh, going back to putting your sweatpants on. Now you really weren't in the mood for this stupid afterparty.

You finish changing, packing all of your things into your Nike duffel bag lazily. "I'm heading out to the party with Ken, I'll see y'all." You call out to the girls still in the changing room. You all share quick goodbyes as you head out.

Standing in the hallway you take a second, looking out at the opening to the field one more time. You really loved that anklet, and hoped maybe it just came off while you were at the bleachers. If it fell off there, it may be a good chance it's still in the same spot..?

You purse your lips, brows furrowed as you decide to go and search. Deep down you had a feeling it wasn't going to be there, but you were hopeful that maybe that feeling was wrong. You run out passed the people still left chatting on the field and some of the bleachers. It had quieted down faster than you'd thought it would, everyone probably already heading home or to the afterparty. You make it over to the bleachers you'd been sitting at, placing your duffel bag down as you search the entire row along with the ones above and below it.

Nothing. No sign of your anklet at all.

With a defeated sigh you plop down on the bleachers, facepalming as you take in the loss of your special piece of jewelry. Now that you were still, you finally noticed your phone buzzing over and over in your sweatpants pocket.

It was like every app was screaming at you for attention at the same time. Instagram, Imessage, Snapchat, Twitter, the list went on. Opting for Imessage first, you look at all the texts you have.

Best Friend #1👩🏾‍🤝‍👨🏻 GET UR AZZ TO THIS PARTY LIL GIRL😤!! I need somebody to get sturdy wit

Y/N💜 I AIN'T NO LIL GIRL LIL BOY😤 Imma be there soon

Best Friend #1👩🏾‍🤝‍👨🏻 U trynna pick me up some fireballs👀🫦🙏🏼??

Y/N💜 🙄Bye Kei...

You loved Keisuke, he's like an annoying older brother to you, and always finds a way to make you smile, though you two don't talk too often.

Emmy's🩵 Hey so my brothers are actually taking me out to dinner tonight so I won't be at the party🥺. Have fun with Ryugujiiiiii😈

Aw damn, Emma won't even be at the party?! You frown a bit but understand. Her brothers love her like crazy so it made sense they'd wanna take her out to celebrate. You send a quick "Awww that's so sweet! I'll see you later girl" and exit out of the chat with her, finally looking at everything Ken sent.

Big K💖 Wya? Been waitin for a while

Big K💖 U comin?

Big K💖 The guys are pressing me

Big K💖 We're leavin now

Your jaw drops as you reread the last text. He just left without you?! Is he serious?! He was supposed to be your ride! Emma and the other girls had already left, and Emma's not even going to the party anymore. Immediately you open up your chat with Keisuke again.

Y/N💜 Bro... Why Kenny leave me😐

You didn't expect him to respond since he's at the party but you went and sent the texts anyways. Now you'd have to go and put your duffel bag back in your dorm then Uber all the way to the frat part. Ridiculous...

A/N 🧚🏾‍♀️: Y'all don't understand how excited I am about this story! Also, having Keisuke Baji as your best friend is just chef's kiss in my opinion, like, I did my big one with that! But yes anyways, so excited about this, definitely put my whole coochie in this story y'all so like eat it up! Like, comment, reblog for sure. See you in the next chapter💖✨

P.S.: I'll have the next chapter soon (I don't really have a schedule yet for updates but if you guys really like it then I'll prioritize)

[strawberryfairi]

“I loved you then…back when I knew you”

Synopsis: 💎 When your old high school best friend, and admittedly, first love randomly shows up at your door one morning after a bit over ten years apart, your memories of him that you once locked away comes flooding back. Are you open to hearing him out after all this time? (In other words…will you take your man back or nah?)

♕Pairings: Kazutora X Black Fem Reader 🛑Content: 18+, Eventual smut, Some grief, Some angst ~Crossposted On: Wattpad ONLY ~Updating WEEKLY

w.c 3.6k💠

Previous | Next Chapters Masterlist

CHAPTER 2: HANEMIYA-SAN

Thankfully, your mom hadn't caught you looking a hot mess with your shirt buttons all ripped off last night as you came home. You just knew she'd lose her mind if she found out what happened, and you didn't feel like stressing her out with that story.

Today was fairly warm, around 20 degrees (68 in Fahrenheit), usual for this time of year. It was almost Autumn, the weather starting to act like it too.

You had texted your group chat last night, telling Asuka and Yumi a bit about what happened last night. They both stated how they wanted a more in-depth version of the story today at school, so that's what you were doing now as you all walked together.

"That's so terrifying! I'm so glad you're ok, oh my gosh." Asuka said, wrapping her arms around you from the side for a hug. Yumi quickly followed suit from the right of you, nuzzling her cheek on your upper arm.

"Thanks guys, I was so scared. If it weren't for that boy who came to help, I might not have shown up today, or any other day to be honest." You sigh, a somber tone in your voice.

"Speaking of that boy...give us the details!" Asuka chimes in.

"Yeah! He really came in and just beat him up?!" Yumi added.

"Yeah, he sure did! It was actually kinda scary. I was worried he was gonna break his bones or something." You admit.

"Woooow! You gotta admit that's so hot though, 'cause that means he's super strong! A high school boy beating up a college guy?! Woooow." Yumi swooned, placing her hands over her chest like a Disney princess. You deadpan playfully, deep down knowing this would come up.

"I'm gonna be honest, it's kind of giving...he might be a gang boy." Asuka said smugly, nudging your arm.

"What do you mean? Just 'cause he beat his ass doesn't mean he's in a gang-

"Ahhhh! Don't be so naive! Think about it, a high schooler beating the ever-loving crap out of a college aged man?! That just screams delinquency!" She shot back rather animatedly.

"Delinquency is crazy." You chuckle, amused that she used that word.

"The real question is...was he hot?" Yumi smirked nudging your arm playfully.

You feel your cheeks heat up a bit, recalling the way you felt so self-conscious of how you looked while with him, and how you caught yourself stealing looks his way more than a few times on the way to your home.

"Ooooo! The hesitation says it all!" Yumi practically hollered.

"I-I mean, you know, he wasn't...ugly." You stuttered out, trying to downplay how you felt about his looks.

"Right right." Asuka rolled her eyes playfully. "Just admit it, you think he's super hot, don't you?" She pressed, a devious smirk on her face.

"Ok well, sure, he was-...he was fine as hell." You finally swoon by the end of your confession, looking at the girls with hearts in your eyes. You all squeal, smacking each others arms before trying to settle down, catching the attention of passerby's.

"Shhh! Alright Aright! He could be anywhere y'all." You giggle.

"Oh my gosh! What if we see him today?!" Yumi murmured excitedly, her voice high in pitch as she tried not to squeal again.

"Honestly, if he was here I'd literally run home-

"Oh don't start that! You look so good today as usual. You did your hair all cute, your uniform skirt makes your butt look nice and jiggly, and your lipgloss is to die for! If he saw you he'd probably like..get hard or something." She shrugs nonchalantly.

"Yumi!" You smacked her arm, feeling your face heat up all over again.

"Whaaaat?! It's true!"

As we reached the main entrance of the school, there seemed to be a little bit of commotion as soon as we got inside. People were murmuring and chatting all over.

"What's going on?" Asuka asked some girls by the front who were quietly squealing amongst each other. You recognized two of the three girls in the group, Miyazaki-chan and Hayashi-chan, two girls in your grade. Both you and Yumi caught up to Asuka, joining in on the conversation.

"Are you kidding me, you haven't heard?! There's a super hot third year that just showed up today, and like all the girls are going crazy about him." Miyazaki-chan explains excitedly, gesturing with her thumb further down the hall.

"Really?" You scrunch your face up in confusion. It's literally all these girls around the halls acting like Michael Jackson just pulled up from the grave or something, and it's all just about some third year boy?

"Yeah! Hanako-chan saw him too!" Hayashi-chan says.

The other girl in the group, Hanako-chan nodded her head frantically. "I've only ever seen him once before now. He came into school just a few minutes ago! You should've seen 'em." She swooned, falling over onto Miyazaki-chan who laughed in response. Yumi nudged you discreetly, gaining your attention. "What if it's him?" She whispered towards your ear, an excited tone in her voice just like the other girls. That question made your heart flutter as a distinct realization hit you. Last night Kazutora had said he was a third year too, didn't he? He mentioned he goes to this school also.

"Wait wait, guys. Do you know his name?" You butted in, cutting off whatever Hayashi-chan was saying. They all looked towards each other, grinning like maniacs.

"Hanemiya-san." They sighed at the same time.

"Hanemiya?" You mutter back, disappointment dripping admittedly heavily from your voice. It must not be the same guy from last night. Still, you were curious about Hanemiya-san seeing as he had so many girls shook. He might as well be a school-wide celebrity.

💎

As the day went by, your patience had started to run thin. It seemed no matter where you were you would always just miss him. Other girls and friends would tell you "girl, are you serious?! He just walked by to his next class; how could you miss him?!". Like damn, you didn't know what he looked like, how were you supposed to know? But the curiosity was starting to ache, you wanted to see him, and figure out what all the hype was about. He better be fine as hell too since all day girls have been going absolutely crazy. You've even heard some guys whispering rumors and whatnot about him too.

Now it's lunch time, and you were determined to lay your eyes on him during this fifty minute period. You sat with Asuka, Yumi and the other girls from this morning at a table near the cafeteria window, all determined for you to see him as everyone else has today except for you.

"This is actually ridiculous, y'all. How'd every girl in the whole school see him except me?! Like, damn!" You groan dramatically.

"Maybe you need a new prescription?" Yumi joked. You pursed your lips in response. "Whatever, I'm gonna get somethin' to drink from the vending machine, y'all want somethin'?" You asked, standing from your seat at the table.

"Ehh, I'm good."

"No, it's fine."

"I already got something."

None of the girls wanted anything so it was just you. You wanted to make it quick so your lunch didn't get cold or, better yet, didn't miss Hanemiya-san somewhere in the caf.

Practically speed walking you finally reach the nearest vending machine, getting yourself your favorite strawberry ramunè. Thankfully, the drink came out without any technical issues, which tends to happen pretty often. You were just about to head on back until the sound of boisterous laughter resounded from one of the classrooms. You furrowed your brows, for some reason becoming nosy, something you never usually were.

"Ha! You're an idiot! You don't know shit about girls."

You peeked from the door, trying to stay well hidden.

"I know about girls! You've never even had a girlfriend!"

"I don't need one to know what they like, bumbass."

Your mouth almost hit the floor, a tiny gasp escaping you as you saw who all was in here. You know those situations where everyone in the group of guys was fine? Yeah no, this was not that. More like one third of the group was gorgeous, and it happened to be Kazutora, that same boy from last night sitting there with a cute wide smile just watching his two friends bicker. He had on the school uniform, obviously, but kinda swagged it out to match with his aesthetic. That same Christmas-looking bell earring was in his left ear, and that tiger tattoo sat loud and proud on his neck in complete view thanks to the style of the uniform.

They each were sitting down, one on the desk, and the other two in chairs pulled out in a triangle formation. Kazutora sat facing the back of the chair, his elbows resting on the desk behind him comfortably.

You were staring, practically drooling, for a good while before he seemed to notice your presence, his eyes glancing over towards you at the door abruptly. You jumped back, placing your free hand on your chest as your eyes widened.

"What? Someone there?" One of his friends asked. That was all it took for you to snap out of your shock, quickly booking it down the hallway and back to the caf.

The girls all noticed you as you walked over to the table. "Girl, you good? You look a little....outta breath." Asuka raised a brow, trying not to laugh. "Ha..." Was all you managed to get out as you sat down back in your chair, looking dazed. "Oooo guys, I think she might've finally seen Hanemiya-san." Miyazaki-chan chuckled, her tone purely mischievous. The girls all looked towards you with wide eyes for confirmation.

"I don't know 'bout no Hanemiya-san, but I did see that boy from last night." You said with a dramatic swoon in your voice.

"Waaaaait! Who?!" Miyazaki-chan's eyes widened. The other girls also had their own expressions of bewilderment as they waited for an explanation.

"This super hot, knight in shining armor ass guy from our school saved her from almost getting raped last night." Yumi explained with a prideful grin, nodding her head.

"Really?! Oh my gosh!" They all gasped at about the same time.

"Mhmm, it was a college guy that he beat up, too!" She added, her grin at this point was giving the grinch. The girls all gasped.

"A guy at our school beat up a college student?! He's gotta be one of the gang boys." Hanako-chan said.

Suddenly, Hayashi-chan out-bursted, slamming her hands on the table, gasping hard while coming to some sort of realization about something. "Oh.my.gosh! Guys, what if that guy that saved her last night was Hanemiya-san?!" She inquired, looking absolutely shook at her own theory. You watched in amusement as all the girls pondered over the idea, then excitedly come to an agreement with it.

"It's not Hanemiya-san, guys. He told me his name last night and it ain't that." You waved them off, chuckling to yourself as you shook your head. "Besides, I saw him just now, that's why I was lookin' so shook."

"Wait, you saw him?! The guy from last night?! What'd he look like?!" Hanako-chan fired questions left and right.

"Uhhh, well he's gotta earring, and pretty light brown eyes, and uhh he has dark hair with blonde highlights...and...." You trailed off watching as everyone's faces slowly turned shocked.

"One last thing", Miyazaki-chan started, her tone purely serious, "Did he have a tiger tattoo..on his neck?" She pointed to her own neck.

Now it was your turn to make a face. You all looked shook as you slowly nodded your head.

"That's..literally Hanemiya-san." Yumi murmured. You lowkey felt a deep sense of womanly pride that the hottest guy in the whole school ended up helping you out last night and even did you the favor of walking you home safely.

A silence fell over all of you, until finally bursting out into loud, high pitched squeals of excitement.

"Ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmy-

"Girl, I'm literally so jealous, I can't even-

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH"

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE"

"The hottest guy in school freakin' saved you, I-aeaferhahuehuahuahuehuaheuahuheua"

"Wait guys!" Hayashi-chan cut in abruptly, her face going from excited to mortified. None of y'all heard her though, you just continued squealing and smacking each other stupidly. Then, it seemed Hanako-chan, and Miyazaki-chan both caught on to whatever she was getting so serious about.

"Guys! I'm telling you-

"HEHEHEHEHEHEHEHHEHEHE"

"I can't believe it's been the same person this whole time!"

"I know right! AAAAAAAAH-

"GUYS!" Hayashi-chan finally snapped, instantly getting us to quiet down. We all looked at her with expressions that read "Why are you killin' the vibe?". Suddenly, you noticed a shadow coming closer from behind you. Yumi, Asuka, and you all turned around at the same time.

"Hey there."

It was like you sat right in front of a fireplace your face was so hot. Kazutora had actually come to the cafeteria, come to you! Did he see y'all acting up like that the whole time? Hopefully he at least didn't hear anything. Did you look alright?!

"H-hi." You inwardly scolded yourself for stuttering, but he was so intimidating it made it hard not to act shy.

"Didn't think you'd see me this soon, huh?" He grinned, tilting his head to the side which made his earring jingle.

"Mm mm." You shook your head, feeling your heart race with nervous excitement. The girls were dead silent, all just watching intently at the scene unfolding directly in front of them. Speaking of a scene, it seemed nearly everyone in the whole cafeteria was watching.

"So, you doin' anything after school?"

The girls gasped out loud at his question. You could tell they were using every fiber of their being not to squeal.

"Uhh no. Just goin' home, why?" You asked cooly, doing your best to keep your own composure.

"Mind if I walk you home?" The way he said it came across more like he was telling you he's walking you home rather than asking. You shake your head, letting out a soft, "I don't mind". He gave you a charming smile that made your heart flutter.

"Cool, I'll see you later then."

You nodded, only able to let out a little "K" in response.

All of you watched Kazutora meet back up with his two other friends, then head back out of the cafeteria, hands in his pockets the whole time. "Wow, what a way to make a statement." Yumi smirked, nudging your arm suggestively.

"What do you mean? I didn't make a statement." You turn towards her with your brows furrowed.

"No, not you, Hanemiya-san! He literally asked what you were doing later, then actually tells you he wants to walk you home?! If that's not a statement, I don't know what is!"

"Yeah, not gonna lie, Yumi-chan's right." Miyazaki nodded.

"He's practically claimed you!" Hanako-chan added excitedly.

"What? Girl, he did not claim me." You chuckle lightly.

"Yes.he.did. Just you wait, once you're out of the denial phase you'll see it." She clapped back, fully serious.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kazutora couldn't believe how utterly boring this day was. The most interesting part was finally being able to find you after catching that small glimpse of you peeking into the classroom, which he thought was so cute. He sat in history class, staring blankly into nothing as he thought about you. He noticed you'd done a different style with your hair, it was pretty elaborate in his opinion. Two buns with two small braids coming down from the crown area and into your face from the front, hanging way past your chin. The buns were big and puffy, looking like little clouds or something. It was a wonder how he wasn't able to find you first seeing as you so easily stand out.

Once school was finally over, he made his way to the entrance, waiting for you patiently. For some reason, Kazutora couldn't really get you out of his head last night or even today. You were cute that's for sure, but there was something else about you that made him want to be around you more.

"Oh, he's here guys. I'll see y'all later, K?"

The sound of your voice caught his attention. He looked up, eyes landing on you instantly. You were smiling wide, giving each friend a hug goodbye. He thought that was pretty adorable, it's not usual girls hug goodbye but you went and hugged each individual friend. Must be a culture thing. He thought to himself. He watched with a grin as you walked up to him, your once big bold smile turning shy instantaneously.

"Ready to go?" He smiled softly.

"Mhm."

The both of you walked side by side, catching multiple nosy eyes as you left the campus together. "So, how was classes?" You asked, trying to spark a conversation. For some reason it was hard for you to talk to him, the nervousness way too much for you to stay levelheaded.

"Boring, honestly, but I didn't mind science." He shrugged.

"Really?! You like science?" You said, eyes wide in surprise.

"I don't know about if I like science, but it got pretty interesting."

You nod, thinking about how your own science class went today. "I don't really like science much; it's alright. History is my favorite of the regular classes, I think, but music will always be my favorite subject."

"Music? What's so great about music class?" Kazutora scrunched his nose in confusion.

"Well everything. I have a keyboard at home that I practice on so...naturally it's my favorite." You shrug plainly.

"What, you wanna be a pianist or something?" He raised a brow.

"Yes, but I also sing. The teacher let's me do both, so I'm pretty cool with him. He also let's me play the piano sometimes after school or during lunch when I feel like it, so that's always nice. But music class also has lots..."

There you go again, rambling on and on about something you really like. Kazutora couldn't help the light tug at the corner of his lips, pulling into a grin as you continued. Even though he barely knew you for twenty four hours, he missed the way you'd ramble. It wasn't often or normal he'd hang around any girls anyways, so he wasn't complaining.

The whole walk consisted of the two of you getting to know each other, keeping conversations going with questions. At some point you had lightened up completely, letting go of that usual shy demeanor.

"Ok ok, would you rather...be a worm or a snail?"

"Ew", you giggled at his rather boyish question, "I don't know maybe a snail 'cause I'd have a little shell-house as opposed to being completely naked." You finished, giggling at the reasoning. "Ok, my turn. Would you rather...be hella short but gorgeous, or super tall but ugly?"

"Mmm. Well if I'm tall and ugly, but have a good personality, I could make it work. But nobody really sees a full personality from across the room. Ehh, I'll go with short but gorgeous."

"Come on short king!" You laughed.

"Would you rather...have huge feet or have huge hands?" He grinned mischievously.

"Eugh, both are trash options! I'll go with feet I guess...summer would be ass though, just trynna wear my flip flops in peace."

Kazutora laughed, making you laugh along with him naturally. "Ok wait, here's a question; not a would you rather one though. But what's your favorite season?" You inquire curiously.

Kazutora looked down at you, taking in the way you have such innocent looking eyes. "Probably this time of year, Autumn. It's way less intense than summer and winter, and spring just gets everybody sick."

"Right! Spring is cute, but honestly, it's treacherous with the allergies! My favorite is summer though, not gonna lie. I hate winter, it's way too cold for me." You visibly shudder, shaking your head.

"But winter let's you cuddle and stuff. I thought girls liked that kind of thing." He chuckled.

"I mean you can cuddle any time of year, but I see how winter probably makes you think of that the most. Think of it this way, I like the aesthetic or concept of winter, but not the weather. Give me the holidays, the cute seasonal drinks and all that, but leave that freezin' ass weather on the shelf." You laughed.

"I get that. Yeah, winter can get a little too cold for me too. I think fall is the perfect in between; and my outfits always look best this time of year anyways."

It seemed like a two minute walk as opposed to twenty as you both finally made it to your place. You frowned discreetly, a little disappointed that you're little hang out session with Kazutora would end just as it was getting good.

"Thanks for taking me home." You said softly, feeling the shyness starting to creep back up again. "You're welcome. I'll see you tomorrow, ok?" He said, his voice a bit softer now.

"K!" You smile, giving him a wave as you happily made your way into your apartment building.

[strawberryfairi]

“I loved you then…back when I knew you”

Synopsis: 💎 When your old high school best friend, and admittedly, first love randomly shows up at your door one morning after a bit over ten years apart, your memories of him that you once locked away comes flooding back. Are you open to hearing him out after all this time? (In other words…will you take your man back or nah?)

♕Pairings: Kazutora X Black Fem Reader 🤎 (ANYONE CAN READ)🛑Content: 18+ Eventual smut, Some grief, Some angst ~Crossposted On: Wattpad ONLY ~Updating WEEKLY

w.c. 3.3k💠 Released Jan 10, 2024

Previous | Next Chapter Chapters Masterlist

CHAPTER 5; VALHALLAS NUMBER 3

Your mom had a world shattering conniption when she saw your black left eye Saturday morning, the day after all that with Osanai and his buddies went down.

You spent the entire weekend getting 'fixed up' as your mom called it, icing it and just laying down. She treated you like you were elderly and couldn't take care of yourself, bringing you food, tea, and water whenever you needed it. You didn't mind it at all, seeing as she was just expressing her immense amount of care.

Now it was Monday, time for school, and around that time where Kazutora would wait outside for you. Peeking through the curtains by your window, you checked to see if he was there.

He was in fact there.

Your heart both sank and fluttered at the same time. You wanted to see him but you didn't want him to see you, not like this. You had scrambled around through your hair products like a crazy person just minutes before, trying to style your hair in a way that would shield your black eye from view. With a deep sigh, you made your way down to the entrance of the building, mentally preparing to take on the day.

It'd be a lie to say Kazutora wasn't dying to know how your little 'date' went with the ballsy kid who asked you out last Friday. It'd also be a lie to say he wasn't hoping and praying it was terrible, wishing all the worst on the kid so you'd never choose to spend time with him over Kazutora again.

Even though he wished the worst, he wasn't expecting at all to find out what he did when you both got to the campus.

"That's why you have your hair in your face like that?! Let me see it." He demanded sharply, prying your hands away from your face. "No, no!" It's fine, let go!" You shot back, using all your strength to keep your hands in place. As other students walked by, they glanced over curiously at the two of you, trying to see what was going on. "Let.me.see it." His tone was so low and intimidating you dropped your hands immediately, looking up at him for just a second before looking towards the ground shamefully.

"You gotta be fucking kidding me." He gritted out angrily, gently lifting your head up by your chin and brushing your bangs back. His eyes practically scanned you, searching all over for any other wounds. He was beyond livid. If you were with him nothing like this would ever happen. It felt like the time you both first met all over again. If that night he was seeing red, today he was black out enraged. Kazutora was pissed at whoever you were with for not protecting you, and even more pissed that someone had the audacity to hit his girl.

Uuhhh, his girl as in girl that's a friend, his friend...that's what he meant.

"Tell me who did this to you." He commanded, his voice the tiniest bit softer than before. Your heart sank nonetheless, already knowing where this was going. "What're you gonna do?" You asked anxiously, subconsciously grabbing onto his jacket sleeve as if to keep him from going anywhere.

"Don't worry about what I'm gonna do, tell me who did this."

The look on his face was starting to scare you a little, and his tone was so demanding you felt like you had to tell him. You pursed your lips, hoping you won't regret telling him the truth. "Y-Yamagishi said it was someone named Osanai. He's a leader of some gang-I forget the name."

Kazutora's jaw was clenched so tight his teeth could probably break at any second. He knew exactly who that was. Arrogant idiot always thinks he can do shit and just get away with it. Now he's got himself a real problem. He also made a mental note to deal with whoever the hell this Yamagishi kid is, since he's the one who let this happen to you. "Wait for me after school. I'm taking you home-

"Wait! Where are you going?!" Frantically you pulled on his jacket sleeve, looking up at him with wide eyes. He didn't even respond or look at you, in his mind he was already set on finding Osanai, imagining giving him two black eyes in return for the one he gave you. "Please just stay here; it's over now!" You pleaded, hoping it would change his mind. Osanai was a really tall, really skilled fighter. You didn't want Kazutora to get hurt even though he can fight too. It's just not necessary to do all that in your opinion. Gently, he took your hand off of him, looking down at you with a much softer expression. "You don't have to do this." You murmured before he could say anything, shaking your head as tears started forming in your eyes.

"Yeah I do. Just wait for me." He replied in a firm yet gentle way, softly brushing the back of his fingers over your bruised left eye. A chill shot down your spine from the back of your neck, while your cheeks heated up rapidly. You nodded your head, watching him give you a small smile before walking away off the schools campus.

Honestly...the whole situation set off a massive case of the butterflies in your stomach. It was like the whole cage flew open, letting them all loose to flutter around wildly. Even though you worried for Kazutora's safety, it'd be a lie to say you weren't extremely flattered. He didn't say it but it's obvious he cares about you, maybe it's safe to say he cares a lot.

You practically floated your way into the school building with a goofy little grin, radiating roses, glitter, and sunshine as you headed to your locker.

"What is this five foot five beam of ethereal light over here?" Asuka chuckled, walking over to you from the right.

"Oh, hey girl!" You sang, closing your locker and giving her a bright smile.

"You slide down a rainbow or somethin'?" She raised an amused brow.

"No, I just-...it's a nice day." You sigh, finally attempting to snap yourself out of the daze you were basking in. "What, Hanemiya-san finally ask you out?" She nudged your arm, grinning devilishly.

"No, he didn't ask me out. We're just friends", You giggle, "Where's Yumi and everybody?" You furrowed your brows.

"You didn't see in the chat? Yumi got a stomach virus so she can't come today. I think the other girls are here but I haven't seen 'em." She shrugged.

"Wait what?! Yumi got a stomach virus?! Oh my god! She texted the group chat?!" You rambled, eyebrows lifted in shock as you processed this new info. "Yeah, she texted this morning. Apparently it's pretty bad." Asuka frowned, whipping out her phone and showing the conversation between her and Yumi.

"Awww, Yumi." You murmured, brows furrowed in concern. You had a thought to maybe slip away at lunch with Asuka and have her take a video of you playing Yumi a get well song in the music room.

"What's up with the hairstyle today by the way? It's not bad but...can you even see?" She scrunched her face up in confusion, reaching for your bangs. You spent a lot of time picking your afro out to make it big enough to cover your eyes in the front. Kazutora already went and stuck his hand in it, you don't want Asuka to mess it up more.

"No! Wait wait!" You blurted out frantically, jumping back.

"What?! I'm not gonna mess it up." She assured. The way you jumped back had scared her a little.

"Just...come on." You huffed, grabbing her wrist and leading her over to the bathroom.

Luckily, Asuka and you were the only people in the girls room. "Don't freak out when I show you, ok? I'm gonna explain." You warned slowly, your tone low. She nodded, trying to hide the bewildered expression on her face. You swiped your hands over your forehead, brushing your bangs back and exposing your dark purple left eye.

Asuka gasped hard, both hands hovering over her mouth as her eyes widened two times it's size. "Please...do not tell me Hanemiya-san did this." She demanded lowly, her eyes already starting to light up with an angry fire.

"No, no he didn't do it. It was some gang leader guy, Osanai or whoever. It happened last Friday while I was walking around with the boy in my math class, Yamagishi." You explained simply.

"He didn't step in and help you?! How could he let this happen to you?!" She scoffed angrily, grabbing your cheeks gently and shifting your head side to side, analyzing the damage. It reminded you of earlier this morning when Kazutora was looking at your face.

"No he tried! He-...he tried." You sighed in defeat.

"Yamagishi's that nerd kid, right? The one who's obsessed with you." She asked, hesitantly letting go of your cheeks, her eyes stayed glued to your black eye though. How did she know already about his crush on you? You must not be paying enough attention to what goes on around here.

"Yeah. He'd asked me to hang out with him on like Tuesday last week. He was trying to ask me out, but while we were walkin' around we kinda got mixed up in some chaos." You explain in a low tone.

"Ugh, ridiculous. I can't believe how bold these delinquent boys are getting! You can't even walk around anymore without one of them starting a fight! If you need anything you let me know, ok? Shoot, I'll go beat him up myself."

"Nah nah, you don't have to do that. Kazutora's already handling it." You chuckled. Asuka gasped again, her face lighting up like a Christmas tree.

"Whaaaaaat?! So he's gonna go fight on your behalf?! He's gonna defend your honor?!" She beamed, cheeks turning dusty pink from the amount of excitement she felt.

"Not defend my honor." You laughed even harder.

"That's literally what he's doing! Girl...what if he really does like you? I mean, who goes and fights on behalf of a girl they don't even like?" She raised her brows suggestively, nudging my arm. "Well I'd hope any guy would defend a girl that got beat up by another dude, wether they like her or not."

The bathroom fell silent as a few other girls came in, chatting about something. "Come on, let's go before we're late for our first class." You stated, fixing up your hair before making your way out of the bathroom.

"He likes you. You know I'm right..." Asuka mumbled, grinning like the Cheshire Cat.

You spent the rest of the school day feeling a mixture between anxious and flattered when it came to Kazutora going to find Osanai. It's been hours now since this morning, and you kinda figured maybe he'd come back to school for the rest of the day afterwards. You really hoped he wasn't hurt, or in the hospital on life support..or something.

What if Osanai won? That'd be so embarrassing. Like how do you recover from that? You guessed maybe like how Yamagishi recovered...crying until he felt better. But, would Kazutora cry about something like that? He's probably gotten his ass beat plenty of times before and people respect him all the same.

The more questions your mind generated, the more worried you got about the possible state of Kazutora. Is he good?!

You barely payed attention in the last class of the day, practically glaring at the clock for it to move faster. You couldn't wait to get out of here. If only you were the type that was built for ditching school, you'd have been left!

But thankfully, it was the end of the day, and you were finally free to go. You told Asuka that you had to run, wanting to head out as soon as possible to see if Kazutora actually came back.

"Oo! I wanna see too!" She exclaimed, following after you quickly. The two of you scrambled ungracefully down the two flights of stairs, almost tripping each other as you went down. You two laughed, panting hard at the near dominos-type collision that almost happened.

"You think he won the fight?!" Asuka glanced at you curiously, adjusting her book bag on her shoulder.

"I hope so!" You replied back, slightly out of breath.

"He won...I'm sure he did." She assured, just as you two reached the first floor. You spotted Kazutora first, standing there by the front doors with his hands in his pockets leisurely. You let out a breath of relief, speeding over to him and surprising him with a hug. "Oh my gosh, I was so worried you wouldn't come back!" You cried out dramatically, nuzzling your face in his chest. His heart fluttered at your reaction, not really expecting you to act like this at all. He chuckled lightly, wrapping his arms around you.

On the outside, Asuka was silent, just simply watching you two with a goofy smile on her face. However, on the inside she was running around the entrance of the campus, smacking your arm repeatedly, and squealing like a newborn squirrel or something.

You two looked and sounded like a couple, holding each other all close like that! He was so happy too, it was obvious, he was loving the way you were all over him. She was ten thousand percent sure he'd probably go home tonight and relive this moment over and over again (she was right).

"Oh wow...you think they got back together?"

"Maybe he left early this morning to like..think their relationship over?"

"They look so cute together! Are you sure they're not dating?"

Asuka was sooo hype at the way people were whispering about you guys as they walked passed her. She tuned back into what you two were talking about.

"What?! You broke his arms?! Kazutora!" You exclaimed, shock and bewilderment all over your face. Asuka's jaw also dropped. He broke that guy's arms, and he's talking about it like that's the most normal thing to do. He simply shrugged in response, wrapping his arm around your shoulders as he led the two of you away from campus.

"Oh wait; I'll see you, Asuka! Unless you wanna walk with-

"No no no, it's ok, bye guys!" She cut you off, giving an energetic wave before making her way down her usual path home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Earlier That Day

Kazutora had already finished dealing with Osanai, sending him straight to the hospital with two broken arms, a broken nose, and a black eye. Now it was time to handle the weak ass idiot that let his princess get hurt in the first place.

Walking nonchalantly to the school, he made his way inside discreetly, searching like a lion on the prowl for his next victim.

Kazutora is a strategist though, so instead of suffering through wandering the halls of the school until he found Yamagishi, he went and located one of his friends.

"Hey! Can I talk to you for a sec?" He asks with a pleasant smile.

A kid he vaguely knew named Akkun turned around, his expression a mix of shock and fear. "M-me?!" He stutters, pointing at himself with a thumb.

You're the only other person in the hallway genius...

"Yeah! I'm lookin' for a kid named Yamagishi. You know 'em?" He tilts his head to the side, still maintaining that sweet smile on his face. Of course Akkun knew exactly who he was asking for, he also knew he was in no type of position to lie to Kazutora. He's Valhalla's number three for a reason.

"U-uhhh, he's..probably in science right now? In-in classroom 2-A." Akkun mutters, feeling his palms begin to sweat. He felt terrible, he had no idea what he potentially just involved one of his best friends in. He'd surely find out at some point though.

"Alright, thanks!" He smiles politely.

Without giving Akkun a chance to respond, Kazutora's already on his way to the classroom.  But would you look at this pleasant surprise. Just as he made his way up the winding steps to the upper floor, Yamagishi was walking unsuspectedly a few feet in front of him, just having come from the guys bathroom.

Kazutora's eyes darken as he notices the kids scrawny figure. He catches up to him with ease, yanking harshly on the back of his shirt, Yamagishi let's out a strangled noise of shock before falling backwards onto the ground. He takes a moment to hurriedly adjust his glasses back on his face, eyes widening in shock as he realizes just who'd caused his fall.

"Ka-kazuto-

Before he could finish Kazutora lands a hard, swift kick straight into Yamagishi's side, sending him slamming into the lockers against the wall roughly. He coughs, glasses long gone. He didn't even have time to really gather himself before Kazutora is down on top of him, landing punch after punch straight to his face. He grabs a fistful of Yamagishi's shirt, lifting him to meet his fiery gaze.

"You know that pretty girl you brought to the park the other day? The one you let go home with a black eye?" He questions, obviously already knowing the answer.

Yamagishi blinks a few times before realizing exactly who he was talking about. He confusedly stutters out your name, looking up at a blurry Kazutora.

"That's the one. I better not ever see you around her again, you hear me? Ever." Kazutora threatens menacingly.

Yamagishi is bewildered at his words but nods frantically nonetheless. He didn't realize you were already with Kazutora. Had he known you were his he'd never have asked you out. It all made sense now why you rejected him after he attempted his confession. Of course you wouldn't wanna be with him. Kazutora's everything he's not.

Kazutora releases his grip abruptly, letting Yamagishi fall to the floor like he weighed nothing, gets up, then casually makes his way out of the school building.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You invite Kazutora to stay over at your house after walking you home, it just felt right seeing as he spent the day literally fighting for you.

You lead him inside and up to your room, placing your keys on the little key hanger by your door and lazily take off your shoes.

"Today was so boring! I don't wanna do anything else!" You blurt out loudly, running over and plopping down onto your bed. You outstretch your arms towards Kazutora, smiling sweetly.

His heart does another little tug in his chest at the way you look so cute like that. Without wasting another second he takes off his shoes and sits next to you on the edge of the bed. He watches you silently as you grab your laptop, turning it on and opening up Netflix.

"Couldn't we have watched Netflix from the TV in the living room?" He furrows his brows.

"Well we could but my mom will be home soon and I don't want her to kick you out." You explain plainly, eyes locked to the screen as you scroll through shows and movies to watch. Kazutora's face heats up. This is his first time in a girl's room, in your room. The craziest part is that you're completely unfazed, just chilling out on the bed like it's any other girl friend with you.

"O-oh..that makes sense." He chuckles nervously, fiddling with his uniform jacket.

"You can sit further on the bed, you know? You won't even be able to see the screen like that." You laugh lightly, patting the side of the bed.

He was sitting on the edge while you were fully on the bed, leaning against your pillows with the laptop resting on both of your legs. Kazutora swallows, hesitantly adjusting himself to sit directly next to you. His heart skips a beat as your arms and legs touch. What's he suppposed to do now?

"Ohhh, I love this movie! I didn't know they added it to Netflix, oh my gosh!" You beam. It was an old Dreamworks film, El Dorado. You knew the music in this movie like it was the national anthem. "Alright, I'm gonna change and then I'll start the movie." You explain, getting up from the bed and making your way to your clothing drawer.

"W-wait, you're gonna change right here?!" He stutters, looking at you as if you just grew two more arms as his cheeks turn bright pink. You giggle at his reaction, shaking your head.

"No fool, I'm gonna change in my bathroom right there. It's connected." You point at the medium sized bathroom directly in front of the bed. Kazutora let's out a mumbled "Oh" in response.

"You want something to change in? I have some of my older brother's clothes you could wear." You offer, holding up a large sized hoodie and sweatpants.

💎 3 Hours Later

The main lights in your room had been turned off about two hours ago, leaving only the cute warm fairy lights in your room on. Kazutora finally settled down after getting used to being in a girl's room, and was teetering between the dream world and reality while resting his head on your lap.

You had unintentionally learned an instant knock out trick on Kazutora, it was simply telling him to rest his head on your lap, then proceeding to gently massage his scalp with your fingertips. It was honestly adorable watching him struggle and fight so hard to stay awake, trying to watch these movies with you. The sleep was inevitable though, and soon he was completely out cold. This ends up being the most peaceful, deepest sleep he's ever experienced in his life.

Then soon you find yourself falling asleep too, making this the first time you've ever had a sleepover with a boy.

[strawberryfairi]

Synopsis✨: The story of how you catch heavy feelings for the hot photography student, Shuji Hanma…even though you already have the perfect (fake) boyfriend.

Pairings: Photography Student! Shuji Hanma X Dance Major! Black Fem 🤎 Reader (ANYONE CAN READ🧚🏾‍♀️) Content: Drama, angst, sneaking link, lots of cheating, some dark moments, unserious Shuji, controlling parents, forced relationships, romance, fighting, porn with a good plot vibes, intense sexual tension, etc (just find out the rest lol)

w.c: 4.4k💠 Released: Jan 5, 2024

Previous | Next Chapters Masterlist

2; NO FILTER 无滤镜

By the time you made it to the party, it had already been going on for an hour and a half. You were so over it at this point. You'd forgotten to even change out of your outfit when you got to the dorm so you're standing out front of this party in straight up sweatpants over your dance costume and basic all white air forces. At least you were serving face with your makeup look.

The music is blasting, and there's folks all over both outside and inside. The frat house is huge, a popular spot seeing as the parties here are always the best...and the wildest. There's always plenty of juicy stories after a night at the frat house.

When you walk inside you immediately start looking around for familiar faces. It was jam packed, making you slightly scrunch your face as you weave through the multitude of people. You searched around the first floor, looking through the dance floor in the living room, the halls where mostly people were kissing or whatever, then you finally find Ken in the kitchen area.

You abruptly stop, just as you were about to call out to him, noticing him and a few other guys from the team all being crowded around by a bunch of girls. Mostly cheerleader girls and their groupie friends to be exact.

Ken had one hand leaning on the counter next to some girl, basically caging her in as the other hand poured some Vodka into her mouth, cheering her on along with everyone else. Your heart dropped, face heating up rapidly as a mix of confusion, anger, and embarrassment seeped through you. What the hell was going on here?!

It also doesn't go unnoticed that some of the other guys on the team definitely have their arms around the waists of girls that were not their girlfriends.

Then after she finishes downing what he poured, she leans her head back upright, then randomly pulls him into a sloppy, open-mouthed kiss. You gasp eyes going wide. You're only frozen for a few seconds before you storm fully into the kitchen. In your opinion it took Ken a little too long to finally come to his senses, pulling away from the kiss with his eyes widened in shock just as he sees you coming over angrily.

"What the fuck are you doing?!" You yell, pushing past everyone to stand directly in front of the two.

"Oh shit..." He mumbles under his breath.

"Hello?! Why's it quiet now?! I just asked you a question!" You outburst, snapping your fingers in front of their faces. This girl was vaguely familiar to you, but your mind was really in no condition to try and figure out where right now. She was a brunette, long haired girl with a butterfly tattoo sat right between her breasts. Of course she wore the perfect top to show it off.

"You didn't answer any of my texts. I thought you weren't even here." He says randomly. What the hell does that have to do with a whole other ass chick's lips on him?!

"I was still at the stadium before you left me. Why didn't you wait for me like you said?" You grit out.

Awkwardly, the girl slips her way passed the two of you, going over to where everyone else had also awkwardly migrated to. "The guys were rushing me, I didn't wanna hold them up-

"So you leave your girlfriend instead?! I had to walk all the way back to the dorms then Uber here, Ken! You were supposed to be my ride!" You rant.

"Hey hey, lower your damn voice." He narrows his eyes, tone actually having the audacity to be stern.

"Who-I know you ain't talkin' to me like I'm some child! Lower my voice?!" You scrunch your face up, only becoming angrier by the second.

"First of all, you left me when you said you were gonna wait, then I finally get here and I catch your sorry ass with some other girl all over you?! Kissing you?! Who the fuck even are you?! What happened in the last hour I've been away?! Like, what did I miss; enlighten me please!" You rant, throwing your hands up in frustration. At this point there was a good chunk of people just watching what was going on, whispers and murmurs started sparking up in the vicinity.

Ken clenches his jaw in annoyance, pissing you off yet again.

"I'm sorry, alright?! I'm a little crossed right now, and I didn't expect her to do something like that." He argues.

"Ohhhh ok, right right. So, we're just a little crossed and didn't expect her to do that. My thing is, why was she even that close to you in the first place? What are you pouring Vodka into her mouth for?" Your tone is blade sharp as you throw question after question his way.

You weren't necessarily yelling anymore but you were clearly seeing red. You swear Ken must've lost his mind in the last hour, because this is so unlike him. It's like he's completely forgotten who both of your parents were, like he forgot if they find out about something like this both of your careers could be over before they even start.

"Babe, babe, I apologized already. What else do you want me to do?! I didn't know she was gonna kiss me!" He argues, throwing his hands up exasperatedly.

"How 'bout not put yourself in a position to even have something like that happen! This don't even make no sense, Ken! You just straight up let her kiss you, like, I watched you hesitate! Had I not come over here would you have even stopped?!" Your eyes start to well up with tears, voice shaking slightly as you try to maintain your angry demeanor.

You hated that he wasn't even trying to comfort or reassure you or anything. He has the nerve to just try to brush it under the rug like it wasn't that big of a deal. You knew for a full fact had this been the other way around he'd probably have caused the loudest riot, and your parents would for sure find out.

He doesn't say a word, just watches you as you try to keep your composure together. No 'let me fix this, babe', no nothing. Sure the two of you are a fake couple with no real feelings of love towards each other, but he could at least act like he cares that you're upset. You sure would. Then to make matters worse, if rumors about this starts to spread, your mom will definitely hear about it.

"Tch." You push passed him and quickly head out of the kitchen, avoiding looking at everyone staring as you storm out.

Embarrassed couldn't even begin to cover how you felt right now. You couldn't believe he disrespected you and the relationship like this, and then went as far as to give that half-assed apology as if that was acceptable! He could've at least tried to come after you when you walked out of the kitchen! You sniffle, trying to calm yourself down as you figure out somewhere fairly secluded to go.

You're back in the living room dance floor area now, the most crowded part of the whole house. You've been to enough parties here to know all of the avoid spots. The living room: where everyone comes to dance as the DJ set is there, the basement: x activities that shall not be named, the balcony upstairs: all the potheads love it there, the bathrooms: illegal drugs...that's all that needs to be said, and the bedroom: other x activities that shall not be named. Even though that seemed like the entire house, there were a few spots left you could go.

Weaving through the multitude of people, you stay close to the wall, heading through the living room and straight out of the sliding glass door. This frat house, as stated before, is very huge, big enough to have a large pool area outside that you can get to from the living room's sliding glass door.

You quickly speed walk to the poolside area, then plop yourself down on one of the pool chairs just as the tears started flowing down your cheeks.

You had fought so hard to keep your makeup looking nice, trying not to cry, but it just seemed like tears were inevitable tonight. Using the sleeve of your costume you gently dab your face, not wanting anything to smear so you don't end up giving the Joker from Batman.

You take a deep breath, exhaling through your nose as you lay back against the pool chair, looking up at the stars somberly. What has this night come to? Everything was so great, then it just...wasn't. Maybe losing your moms gift to you was a sign, 'cause right after that things took a hard left turn.

You felt like you only had a brief moment to even take in your huge accomplishment, now it's like you didn't even do it. This was supposed to be your celebration, your big night with Ken.

We'll see each other tonight, baby. We'll have the whole night actually....

"Liar..." You whisper to yourself bitterly, closing your eyes as you let out an exasperated sigh, feeling completely drained of energy at this point. Oddly enough the sound of the muffled music coming from inside was starting to become almost soothing, mixing harmoniously with the sounds of crickets and echoed conversations. You could actually fall asleep to this...

"You get lost or somethin'? The party's inside."

You jump with a loud yelp, almost falling out of the pool chair as a deep, male voice cuts into the silence. You look around frantically before your eyes fall on some random dude laying in one of the pool chairs to the left of you. He was about four chairs away from you, fully laid out with a cigarette between his fingers, one eye open as he looks over at you lazily. He was dressed pretty basic for a party, nothing but a white v-neck top and jeans. But who were you to talk though...

"Who-who-?! You're sayin' am I lost like you're not out here also." You narrow your eyes, looking him over with a scrutinizing gaze.

Now who the hell is this dude talkin' to?! You weren't really sure since you had your eyes closed earlier, but you figured you were definitely out here first.

"Got me there." He murmurs with a shrug, then pauses before speaking again. "You that dancer girl? The one with the anklet?" He asks slowly, before taking a fairly long drag from his cigarette.

"Wait, the anklet? You seen my anklet?!" At this you sit up completely, eyes wide as you impatiently wait for his answer. He opens both of his eyes finally, then reaches into his left back pocket, taking out your gold anklet. You gasp like a fish out of water, jumping up to your feet and practically running over to him.

"Oh my god! I was looking all over for this! How'd you find it?!" You ramble excitedly. You probably looked like a happy golden retriever with the way you're demeanor completely lit up.

"I didn't. I caught it when it flew off your ankle. Woulda hit me in the face if I didn't catch it." He says with a slight grin, chuckling at the memory of being attacked by your jewelry.

"You caught it?! Is it broken?! Lemme see it!"

He hands you your anklet, letting you observe it and check the clasp. Everything seemed fine with it, but you made a mental note to maybe take it in to a jeweler to get it checked out sometime just in case. "Well, thank you for..catching it." You chuckle lightly, sitting down on the pool chair next to him so you could hook it back around your ankle, this time making sure it was done right.

"'S nothin'. What's your name?"

You tell him your name just as you finish clasping your anklet. "Pretty. I'm Shuji Hanma." He says coolly, taking another drag of his cigarette.

"Thanks." You say with an uncharacteristically bashful laugh. Before you hadn't really been paying too much attention to what this guy looks like, but now that you were sitting up closer, you could really look at him.

Long story short, Hanma's gorgeous, with those honey brown eyes and that deep, sensual voice. He has a single gold earring in his left ear, a unique drop design. He looks pretty tall, yet he's also very muscular, maybe a basketball player you think.

Your eyes trail over to his large veiny hands, with tattoos of some sort of Chinese writing on the back of them, and his long, slender fingers. His hair is fairly short, black, and tussled messily to perfection with blonde highlights in the front that hangs slightly over his eyes. Your face instantly began to heat up as your eyes selfishly continued to drink him in.

You don't smoke, but there's something about the way he's so casually taking those drags, something about his full, pink lips and the way they blow the smoke into the air. He's so effortlessly sexy, and from the way he seems to carry himself, he must know it too.

"Havin' a good time over there eye fuckin' me?" He asks smugly, a small smirk making it's way across his perfect lips as he takes a drag.

"I-I wasn't eye-fucking you!" You stammer, voice unnaturally higher pitched as your face completely set on fire, embarrassed that he caught you staring. 

"No? Just thinkin' in my direction or somethin'?" He teases, blowing smoke in front of him as he looks at you with his head tilted inquisitively. You purse your lips in a frown, unsure of a good comeback, only furthering your embarrassment. He let's out a breathy chuckle, shoulders shaking just slightly.

"Doesn't bother me, doll, you can fuck me with those pretty eyes all you want. It's better in real life though." He shrugs plainly, full on smirking.

Your jaw hits the floor dumbstruck, blinking multiple times as you process what he just said. Nobody has ever talked to you like this before, especially not someone you've just met. It's so bold and nonchalant...and sexy. "Again, I wasn't eye-fucking you. I was just...lookin' at your tattoos." You lie, well, it was partially true.

"Oh yeah? You like 'em?" He asks with a particularly seductive dip in his tone, looking you straight in the eyes. His gaze is so intense you couldn't help but look away, too fearful you'd be sucked in and swallowed whole if you looked any longer.

"Well yeah. I don't know what they mean though." You shrug plainly, hoping to mask the shyness creeping its way up to the surface. He sits up from the pool chair, turning to face you and leaning onto his knees, getting fairly close into your personal space. You don't dare back away, holding your ground as he shows you the back of his hands, his cigarette resting between his fingers in his right hand. 

"They say sin and punishment'" He says lowly, showing you each hand with a proud yet mischievous looking grin on his face.

"Oh..." You murmur sheepishly. The way he explained that made you squeeze your thighs together, visibly swallowing as yours eyes flicker from his hands to his eyes. Hanma's lips curve into an almost devious looking smirk, loving the obvious effect he was having on you.

You felt stuck, like a mouse trapped in a corner by a cat. It's the way his eyes so boldly swallow you up without a single care if you notice or not. You had to change the subject quick, lighten things up before you unintentionally set yourself on fire.

"So...I'm assuming we go to the same school. What's your major?" You ask as pleasantly and coolly as possible.

"Digital photography." He replies, leaning back a bit.

"Oh really?! I was not expecting that. You're the first photography major I've met so far here." You say the last part more to yourself. It seems today is actually the most time you've spent around the photography and journalism majors thanks to that interview this morning.

"There's not too many of us I think." He shrugs before taking a slight pause. "You seem like too good'a dancer to be doing it as a side thing." He raises a brow slightly.

"Oh yeah, I'm one of the dance majors for sure." You laugh softly.

"You looked good out there during the halftime show. I got a lot'a nice shots."

As soon as he said that it clicked how he'd be able to catch your anklet. The photographers were the only people able to be on the field during the halftime show, so of course he caught it. "Thanks! I hope I can see them at some point." You smile softly, unconsciously fiddling with your hands on your lap.

He goes quiet for a moment, looking to the side in thought. "You could see 'em now if you want."

"What d'you mean?"

"My camera's in my car out front. Wanna see 'em?" He offers again.

You bite the inside of your lip, brows slightly furrowed. Sure going into this guy's car to look at pictures seemed innocent, but at the exact same time, this isn't just any guy. He's gorgeous, with those tempting eyes that makes your mind fog whenever you look at them for more than a second. Hanma's dangerous for you, he's way too attractive to be playin' around.

You're taken, and even though you're beyond pissed at Ken, that's unfortunately who your man is.

However, no matter how loudly the alarm bells rang in your head.... "Yeah." You nod, feeling your heart skip a beat in a mind-fuzzing blend of anxious excitement.

And as if he couldn't get any more attractive, slowly your head lifts as you watch him stand to his full height, towering over you like a damn skyscraper.

Lord have mercy on your soul.....

Hanma leads you around the house from outside, avoiding all the weaving and dipping through people, and straight to his car, and damn, even his car is good looking. A shiny black Dodge Hellcat with dark tinted windows sat there proudly in front of the party house.

You wanted to facepalm at this point. This was just getting ridiculous now. "Hang on a sec." He murmurs, unlocking the car and opening the passenger side, grabbing the camera that was sitting there in its case. He leaves the door open, helping you in to which you utter a small "Thank you." "Mhm." He nods, closing the door and getting in at the drivers side. The car smelled just like him, cigarettes and that wildly intoxicating cologne he's wearing.

You were pretty sure he didn't feel the same, with the way he's sitting there all cool and chill while doing whatever he's doing with that expensive looking camera, but you were inwardly shaking in your boots. The silence felt so heavy, and you weren't sure how to sit or where to look, so you just fiddled with the sequins on your costume, reminding yourself that your boyfriend was just right inside the frat house.

His cigarette was gone you realized, just as he turned to look at you again, the camera roll finally showing the pictures from tonight. "Here, just hit the arrow to go to the next one." He instructs smoothly, handing you the Canon camera. His slender fingers brush against yours as you grab the device, sending immediate shockwaves down your spine from the back of your neck.

Your jaw nearly hits the floor as you look at the first picture on the screen. You looked so flawless you almost didn't even recognize yourself. Though the day had been so stressful, on the field you looked like a dancing goddess, the costume and makeup sparkling under the stadium lights like some kind of ethereal glow.

"Oh my gooooosh! This looks-this is so..." You trail off unable to really find the right descriptive word, your mouth still hanging open slightly. Hanma chuckles breathily, watching you look at the picture in amusement. You take one last long look at the first one, then go on to the next one.

It was just as beautiful as the previous picture. You were in the middle of your intro solo still, he'd caught you with both hands on your hips and a wide smile, your right leg shifted in front of the left making you look particularly statuesque.

Your heart grew warmer and warmer with each picture you went through, not a single one was a flop, not even a little bit. These are the types of pictures your parents would pay hundreds just to keep and show off to their coworkers and neighbors. "Wanna see my favorite?" He murmurs, cutting into the silence. "Your favorite? Sure." You hand the camera back, curious as to which picture he'd show you.

He clicks the arrow through about seven more pictures, going past it for a second before he finally went back, his lips curving upwards slightly when he saw it. "This one. This is the one."

You let out a small gasp, leaning over the armrest as he shows you the picture. It was-no-you were stunning, and you knew exactly which part of the dance that was too. You'd just finished the moment of holding the split during Emma's brief solo. Then as you come up from the ground you'd enter into a spin and stop with your leg pointed outwards, your left hand on your hip as the right is outstretched, and your fingers point down and outwards.

The angle he took the shot in made it seem like you were looking right at the camera, it caught your eyes perfectly. Your expression was fierce due to the part of the song it was at, and your hair was in the middle of flowing with the breeze.

"This is so beautiful." You smile, almost wanting to tear up. For the first time the whole night you finally felt like you had a chance to bask in that half time show moment. Everything had moved so fast afterwards, there was no time to stop and look at posts or pictures. You knew for a fact though that peoples posts on their stories had nothing on Hanma's professional pictures. "You're real easy to take shots of. Every move you made was perfect." He says, his tone strikingly serious.

"Thanks." You chuckle bashfully, looking to the side as you try to force your heart to stop doing that annoying fluttering.

Easy girl, calm down, he's just being nice. It's just a compliment. Think about Ken, just think about Ken...

Hanma goes through a few of the pictures to see for himself before he speaks again. "Y'know, you make a good muse." He says softly, eyes still fixed on the pictures he's sifting through. "A muse? Like, I'm inspirational?" You tilt your head to the side.

"Yeah, somethin' like that." He chuckles a little. Setting the camera on his lap, he looks you over, up and down and back up, making your face turn hot instantly as you shift uncomfortably in the passenger seat. "What?" You murmur, furrowing your brows in a slight pout. You were sure you'd never be able to get used to his piercing eyes and the way they trail all over you so boldly.

"I've had this idea for a project I wanna do, but I haven't been able to find the right model until you." He explains, looking back up into your eyes.

"Me?! Hold up, you want me to model for you?" You gawk, your face contorted into a look of pure shock. His lips curve into a wide, excited grin, eyes almost sparkling as he seems to have made up his mind.

"I do. You're perfect." He nods, his voice velvety smooth, just like honey.

Again you fold under the sound of his voice and sensual eyes, looking at your hands now nervously fiddling with themselves in your lap. "I-I don't have really any experience with any modeling. I mean, dancers do portraits and stuff but...what kind of modeling do you want me to do?" You stammer bashfully, trying yet failing to hold any sort of confident eye contact with him.

"Nothin' you wouldn't be able to do easily. I need a full body, half naked silhouette of you; something in dark lighting." He says, a bit vaguely in your opinion.

A half naked silhouette in dark lighting...with a guy like him?! Now the alarms were really flashing, but at the same time, it was for professional, career related things. There's no harm in helping someone out with their project, right? You knew all about the frustrations of trying to gather people to help bring your vision to life, so you figured why not help him out.

"Uhhh, I mean, I guess I could do it. Is it an urgent project?" You raise a brow a bit, looking over at him briefly.

"If by urgent you mean for a class then no. This is more of a personal portfolio kind'a thing." He shrugs.

A personal thing? So it's no particular guidelines...

"K. Well, let me know when you wanna do it. I'll find some time in my schedule." You nod.

"Perfect. Lemme see your phone, angel." He purrs, holding his hand out lazily. You try to ignore his flirtatious tone and that name he just called you, reaching in your sweatpants pocket. You take out your phone and unlock it, already knowing to pull up your contacts app. Another jolt shoots down your spine as your fingers make contact again while you hand him your phone. "Cool." He smirks, satisfied that you opened to the app without him having to ask, putting his number and name in.

You went and sent him a text, "Heyyy" with two exclamation points so he could save your number in his own phone.

Why'd it feel so wrong to have his number in your phone? This was just a business thing, a collaboration, right? If you weren't so attracted to him it wouldn't feel like nearly as much of a problem as it does now, and maybe if he wouldn't call you angel or doll with that sexy ass voice, that'd probably make it feel better.

Then if Ken hadn't pissed you off beyond belief, it wouldn't feel like you were doing this out of spite, hanging with some guy you just met at a party since Ken wanted to spend his time with another girl and his sports buddies. But you have no intention of cheating though, so...technically there's nothing wrong, right?

There's nothing wrong about this....

A/N🧚🏾‍♀️: Ooool, what y'all bouta get into puttin' dat man number in y'all phoooone?!?! Teehee, hope y'all enjoyed and I'll have the next chapter up soon! It's finna go DEEOWN next chapter okaaay! Like, comment, reblog please, love you all💖

[strawberryfairi]

“I loved you then…back when I knew you”

Synopsis: 💎 When your old high school best friend, and admittedly, first love randomly shows up at your door one morning after a bit over ten years apart, your memories of him that you once locked away comes flooding back. Are you open to hearing him out after all this time? (In other words…will you take your man back or nah?)

♕Pairings: Kazutora X Black Fem Reader 🤎 🛑Content: 18+, Eventual smut, Some grief, Some angst ~Crossposted On: Wattpad ONLY ~Updating WEEKLY

w.c 3.4k💠

Previous | Next Chapters Masterlist

CHAPTER 3: INTERROGATIONS

It's been an entire week now that Kazutora has made sure to show up to school, even though it was just to spend time with you.

About five days into walking you home from school, he decided to start showing up at your place early in the morning. It wasn't enough for him to only walk you back home from school now, as it didn't give him enough time with you. So from day five on he made sure to be at your place bright and early in the morning, and be out front of the school building afterwards to walk with you.

He'd taken a liking to you for sure, though he'd never admit that, hell no. To him, it was definitely just something that would highly likely pass after a while. He never imagined himself really ever being graced with a chance to get to know or hang out with any girls, especially not pretty ones, so to him you were like seeing a shooting star on a clear night. Another bonus is that you treat him and look at him like he's actually a person, unlike most people.

"Hey Kazutora!" You smiled as you walked out from your apartment building. It was becoming a routine of him always waiting out front for you. "Sorry I was a little late, I was strugglin' with my makeup." You chuckled nervously, joining his side on the sidewalk.

"Makeup, huh? I didn't know you wore any makeup." He furrowed his brows. Since when did you start wearing makeup? Was it to impress him?

"Oh yeah, I've been wearing makeup this whole time! But it's good you didn't notice, I like for it to look natural." You shrugged, whipping out your phone and turning the camera on to check if your blush and highlight was coming correct. Kazutora scanned your face openly, searching for the makeup you mentioned but he couldn't really tell. The only thing he knew you always wore was that pink, sparkly gloss that made your lips look irresistible each and every time without fail. Then right on cue, you pulled out that exact lip gloss from your tote bag, skillfully holding both the phone and gloss tube as your free hand applied it carefully.

He raised a curious brow as he watched you. "Tryna look pretty for someone?" Kazutora teased, yet he really just wanted to find out if there was another reason why you wore makeup to school. Did he have competition? Did you already like someone else? Was it for him?!

"No, I just like it. I honestly feel naked without my gloss." You shrugged.

He watched intently, savoring the way the gloss stick glided over your bottom lip slowly then the top as you spoke. Once you decided it was enough gloss, you put the stick back in the tube, blotting your lips together with a soft popping sound. It was odd the way such a normal looking thing made him feel something deep in his chest, like his heart just had a mini attack or something. His eyes stayed glued on your lips, thoughts of tasting that gloss on you with his own lips rang loudly in his mind.

"Oh, guess what? I thought of a nickname for you!" You beamed cutely, ripping him out of his thoughts.

"Oh yeah? Let's hear it." He mused.

"Ok well, I have two options. The first one is K, nice and simple, you know? But then the other-I really like it-is Kazi! What'chu think?"

Your eyes were sparkling like diamonds up at him, completely thrilled by your nickname ideas. He couldn't help the small chuckle he let out as you waited for his response. "I don't mind either one." He answered simply, giving you a nonchalant shrug. "Ok good! Oh, I also came up with a third, but I don't know, it might be kinda embarrassing." You started, your tone getting quieter and quieter as your confidence diminished. You hadn't planned on actually telling him the other nickname you made as you thought it might be too cheesy.

"Well now I wanna know. Tell me." He grinned, nudging your arm.

"Aahhh, fine. Just know as a disclaimer I came up with these nicknames late at night, ok?!"

He felt a shameful amount of pride that you spent time at night actually thinking about something like this...thinking about him. It made him wonder what else you might think about when it comes to him. "The last one I thought of was kitty, cause you have a tiger tattoo, and tigers are big cats..so...yeah." You trailed off, giggling shyly.

"Kitty? I feel like that nickname suits you better." He thought out loud, brows furrowing as he looked you over.

Your heart fluttered at the thought of him calling you kitty. It would be kinda cute since he's like a tiger and you guess you'd be like a little cat. "Ok, I mean, if you wanna call me that I wouldn't mind." You shrugged plainly, trying to act like you weren't all that excited about your new nickname.

He watched as your eyes immediately shifted down towards the ground, your fingers fiddling with each other. This is the perfect moment to mess with you, when you're already vulnerable.

He leaned down a bit towards you, brushing against your arm as he spoke. "I like your hair by the way. It's nice like that." He complimented, voice low and soft, the perfect pitch to make you melt for him.

And right on cue, your eyes widened, looking up at him for a moment before going straight back down towards the ground in embarrassment. You let out an uncharacteristically nervous giggle, making it obvious how much of an effect he had on you. He loved it. "Thanks. I tried something new." You murmured back softly, heart racing at the way he spoke to you.

This morning your hair didn't turn out quite how you wanted it so you decided to try an alternative from a full Afro, slicking down your bangs and leaving the rest out so it gave a headband effect. You were glad he liked it as it was a sign the look wasn't a flop.

Kazutora wanted to keep it going, he really liked the way you react to him. "Are you embarrassed?" He asked, his tone teasing and playful. Laughing lightly he wrapped an arm over your shoulder, pulling you in closer to him.

The proximity was making your brain malfunction.

"No!" You shot back, a bit too quickly, your bottom lip pouted slightly as your brows furrowed. "Just because your face isn't red doesn't mean I can't tell when you're embarrassed. You make it so obvious." He replied in a hushed voice by your ear, sending chills all the way down your spine.

"Whatever. Leave me alone." You mumbled, swatting his face away.

Kazutora smirked, satisfied with his flirtatious gestures for now. He was addicted to the effect he had on you. It didn't take long at all for him to learn just what to say and do to make you flustered.

Once you got to school you both parted ways in the hallway by your locker, but not without another one of Kazutora's promises to walk you home later.

Today seemed to be exceptionally eventful. You felt like you were under constant interrogation, even from your friends, every single time you were in the hallways or just before and after each class. By the time you made it to third period, you'd already memorized the cycle of questions folks would throw at you.

The questions of the day consisted of: ~ Are you and Hanemiya-san dating?! ~ Do you have a boyfriend?! I heard you have a boyfriend now! ~ Are you Hanemiya-san's girlfriend?! ~ Is Hanemiya-san your boyfriend?! I'm sooo jealous! ~ Is it true you're dating that third year delinquent?!

You hadn't even mentally prepared for lunch break. The cafeteria was absolute chaos!

While waiting in line you received a multitude of variation three of the list of interrogation questions. Some girl behind you in the line tapped your shoulder timidly.

"Excuse me? Is it true that you're Hane-

"No, I'm not his girlfriend." You answered with an exasperated sigh. You just wanted to order your food and go. The girl's eyes widened in surprise. Leaning closer towards you she says, "Really?! But, don't you guys walk together every-

"Look, I'm not his girlfriend, he's not my boyfriend, ok?!" You outburst, your hands animatedly supporting your frustration.

"Well sheesh. I was just gonna say you guys look cute together." The random girl mumbled under her breath, moving back from you to give you some space.

We do not look cute together....

You walk over and plop down into your chair dramatically, letting out another deep sigh before digging into your food. The girls all stared at you, waiting rather impatiently for you to speak or do anything.

"What? You guys wanna ask too?" You raised a brow, already knowing what was coming.

"Are you guys dating yet?!"

"He walks you to and from school like every damn day!"

"What's the deal with you guys?!

They all spoke at the same time.

"The deal is we aren't dating! It's been literally a week, guys! Everybody needs to calm down." You shook your head before taking a bite out of your meal.

"Calm down?! It's Hanemiya-san for God's sake! He never, ever walks any girls to school, let alone actually shows up! It's been a record breaking seven whole days, and we all know it's because he wants to see you! Like, we aren't stupid! All the girls are asking because they wanna know if the hottest guy at our school is taken or not!" Yumi ranted, panting at the end.

"What she said...precisely." Asuka nodded.

"I-...well you can let the records show that we are not dating. We just walk to and from school together as genuine friends, that's literally all it's been, I swear." You raised both hands in surrender.

"Yeah, that's all it's been for now! Next thing you know you'll be over each others houses!" Yumi beamed.

"Oh my god!" Hanako-chan slapped her hands over her rosy cheeks. "Imagine he goes over to your place...when your mom isn't home, and you two make out!" She gasped, her voice all extra exaggerated.

"And why would I imagine that, Hanako-chan?" You rolled your eyes, trying to downplay the embarrassment creeping up at that thought.

"Because it's exciting, and you'd definitely do it." Yumi smirked devilishly.

"No I would not." You state sternly, attempting to maintain your best deadpan even though your face was on fire.

"Right, sure, whatever you say." She rolled her eyes dramatically.

"Well, we're all rooting for you. Bad boy x good girl trope for life!" Asuka cheered.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It's been almost five weeks now since meeting Kazutora, yet it seemed like you were always discovering something new about him every single day. Nonetheless you considered him your friend, a good friend actually, as you two have gotten pretty close over this time.

Today's a Friday, the kickstart of the weekend, but it was boring. Extremely.utterly.boring!

Kazutora hadn't shown up at all today. He wasn't there this morning, didn't show up at all during school, and even right now wasn't here to walk you home. It was annoying getting so many teasing questions about if you missed your 'boyfriend' today.

At this point, wether it was true or not, you were officially Hanemiya's princess. The entire school now knew who you were from the bottom up. Nobody bothered to talk any kind of shit about you or try anything with you like they used to, only opting for lighthearted and playful teasing that always had to do with Kazutora, and even that was minimal.

You sighed, realizing you'd have to walk the majority of the way home by yourself today. Thankfully, you went and grabbed your headphones this morning when you realized Kazutora wasn't there, so now you had some music to listen to while you walked.

Once you got home, you went ahead and got straight to doing homework and laundry. You needed something to do and getting the chores outta the way seemed like a good start. You got comfortable, putting on a cute pajama set. It was a light blue shorts set, cute satin bows adorned the sides of the shorts and one in the center of your top under the bust area. You took out your contacts and replaced them with your black framed glasses.

Homework ended up being a breeze, just two math and Japanese literature assignments that took about an hour and some change in grand total to finish. Math took a majority of that time as it's not really your strong suit but you pulled through regardless.

You hadn't realized but at some point you fell asleep on your bed, your tote bag full of school supplies and binders abandoned next to your knees. You were abruptly woken up by the sound of something hitting against your window. You stirred, stretching as your eyes slowly adjusted to your rooms light. Again the tapping sound filled the room. You fixed your glasses on your face then stared at your window for a while, sitting up completely still on your bed, some nervousness forming at the pit of your stomach.

"What the hell....?" You whispered under tour breath, hesitantly creeping your way to your desk. You grabbed your scissors as a weapon and made your way to the window. Peaking from the curtains you checked out what was going on. It was pretty dark now, so it made it a bit hard to see, but you could make out someone standing outside your house.

"Oop-Kazutora?!" You said out loud, mouth dropping in shock. What is this fool doing?! Without thinking, you head out of the house, making your way down to your front door with your slippers on.

"Hey." He smiles once you finally opened the door to your apartment.

"What are you doing here? And why do you look a hot mess?!" You scrunched your face up in bewilderment at the state of him. He had some small cuts here and there, blood stains on his shirt and hands, and wildly messy hair. He gave you a cheeky smile.

"Can you help me out?" He asked softly, gazing over at you with innocent looking puppy eyes. "Really?" You purse your lips, looking him over like a disappointed mom. He pouts his bottom lip, folding his hands together like a prayer. Your eyes narrow at him, feeling your resolve break at how cute he looked even though he was very much looking like a bear attack survivor. "Get in here. You're lucky my mom isn't home yet." You grumbled, turning to head inside while holding the door open for him.

"You don't show up all day but then all of a sudden here you come lookin' crazy like a damn gremlin." You ranted softly, using some cotton balls with peroxide poured on it to cleanse his scrapes on his face and hands. You were sat next to him on the couch, your body turned towards him as you fix him up. "Yeah, sorry about that. I couldn't come today." He mumbled back.

Kazutora just now realized you were wearing glasses right now. Have you worn those around him before? He didn't know you couldn't see well. He liked the look though, to him, you looked like a hot librarian. You were so focused and concerned right now too, eyes looking intently and brows all furrowed while you gently dab the cotton ball on his left cheek bone. You're being so gentle with him, like he'll fall apart if you dab his face too hard, it was adorable.

Quite randomly, his eyes couldn't help themselves, dropping down to your lips ever so slightly parted. They had the nerve to still be all glossy, even though it seemed a bit faded. At this point he was sure you must not realize how attractive you really are. You damn sure don't act like it. Most girls with a gorgeous face and body like yours would be absolutely full of themselves. He honestly wouldn't blame you if you were cocky, you'd actually have a right to be.

"Yeah, I see. Clearly you had some...other things going on." You mumble blandly, gesturing with a lazy nod towards his bloodied hands. You kept your eyes focused on his small wounds, not bothering to look him in the eyes when you spoke. Oh wait, were you mad at him? Probably, seeing as he didn't let you know he wouldn't be at school today. He made a mental note that he should probably get your number.

He pouted for a second, before coming up with a way to get you to forgive him. "You know, you look really pretty with glasses-

"Aht aht! None of that trynna be cute stuff! I don't wanna hear it." You shook your head, tone stern.

"I'm not trynna be cute, I mean it." He smiled cutely, tilting his head to the side so his earring could make that little Christmas sounding noise.

"Mmmhm." You pursed your lips not buying any of it, standing up to go throw away the bloody cotton balls.

"I'm sorry, Kitty!" He called out after you cheekily. You stuttered in your walk over to the kitchen trash can, eyes wide as your heart fluttered. He hasn't called you kitty yet at all before now, you actually thought he'd forgotten about that nickname. You regained your composure, throwing out the cotton balls and making your way back over to him on the living room couch.

"So...you gonna be at school next week?" You ask softly while sitting down next to him.

"Maybe." He shrugged nonchalantly, "Do you want me to be at school next week?" He asked smugly.

"Do you want me to want you to be at school next week?" You shot back, a slight sassy undertone in your voice.

"Of course I do." He grinned cheekily.

"Hmph. Well it would be nice to walk together again." You admitted hesitantly.

Kazutora thought it was cute how you were talking about walking together again as if it wasn't just one day he missed. "Aaaw, did you miss me?" He teased, smiling wide.

"I mean, yeah! We always walk together so I was kinda lonely. I had my music though, but it's nicer walking with you." You admitted.

Something about the way you said that, the way you looked up at him, made his heart do that thing again. That mini heart attack moment where he feels completely out of breath for a split second. He didn't think you'd actually go and say you missed him, 'cause well honestly, nobody ever misses him. "I'll-..I'll be there." He assured you with a tone much softer than he intended. "Good." You answered, your voice subconsciously matching his. The both of you fell silent. Neither would ever admit it but each of you sat there in that moment getting lost in each others eyes. You felt entranced, like the world froze around you. It overwhelmed you, scared you.

"Umm anyways, you wanna watch a movie or something? You hungry?!" You asked abruptly, standing up and already making your way to the kitchen before he could even answer. You went to work, making a plate of leftovers from last night, which was pasta.

You both hung out for two hours after helping him with his wounds, watching a Netflix show on the couch until he had to leave.

It was a wild experience, sitting so close with him for that long. You didn't truly realize it until tonight that maybe you really did have a crush on him. Before you thought it was just simple physical attraction because he's gorgeous, everyone knows that, but the attraction only seems to get stronger from there. The more you get to know him the worse it gets for you.

You get so excited to see him that your heart starts racing every morning before walking together and after school. When he showed up at your place tonight it was like some dream come true. He even had no problem invading your personal space, keeping his leg and his arm against yours at all times while the show carried on, which did nothing but keep you on edge.

You've got a crush on Kazutora, a bad one.

You went to bed staring at the ceiling with wide eyes, your cheeks heated with embarrassment and mild anxiousness. "What am I gonna do? How do I hide it?!" You whispered to yourself. You didn't have not a single clue about Kazutora's feelings towards you. You were sure he didn't feel anything romantic towards you. He's one of those gang boys, he's probably used to girls falling for him all the time. He's also an obvious flirt, so it just makes it harder to tell.

You facepalm before calling it quits. The last thing you wanted to do was become one of those 'does he have feelings?' detectives. It always ends up in stress and looking stupid.

[strawberryfairi]

“I loved you then…back when I knew you”

Synopsis: 💎 When your old high school best friend, and admittedly, first love randomly shows up at your door one morning after a bit over ten years apart, your memories of him that you once locked away comes flooding back. Are you open to hearing him out after all this time? (In other words…will you take your man back or nah?)

♕Pairings: Kazutora X Black Fem Reader 🤎 🛑Content: 18+, Eventual smut, Some grief, Some angst ~Crossposted On: Wattpad ONLY ~Updating WEEKLY

w.c. 3.4k💠

Previous | Next Chapters Masterlist

CHAPTER 4: FEELINGS

"No! You can't hide it, are you crazy?!"Miyazaki-chan exclaimed with wide eyes.

"What do you mean I can't hide it?!" Your face scrunched up in bewilderment.

You girls were all currently eating lunch in an open classroom, somewhere y'all were sure nobody (nobody as in Kazutora) would find you and overhear.

"That's not a good idea. It never ends well trying to hide it." Asuka added.

"Listen, if you try to hide how you feel you're just gonna look like a dumbass." Miyazaki-chan said, her tone serious.

"So what then, the best option is to just show it and look like an even bigger dumbass?!" You scrunched your face as you spoke.

".....Yeah!" They all nodded.

"Hell naw! That is so stupid!" You ranted, throwing your hands up.

"Hey! I don't know why you're freakin' out about this at week, like what, six?! Why didn't you see this coming?!" Hanako-chan accused, pointing a finger at you.

"What?! Who sees a crush on someone coming? Be for real." You rolled your eyes.

"Literally everyone except you, apparently! You didn't notice the way you've been acting around him? I mean damn, you've had hearts in your eyes since the day he first came to school!" Yumi ranted.

You slapped a hand over your mouth, letting out a deep gasp. "Did I really?!" You asked nervously, your tone much softer now.

"Yes!"

"It was pretty bad."

"Literally hearts in your eyes."

"Everyone noticed."

They all said one after the other. You groaned, covering your face with your hands. "I don't think this is good. I don't know if he likes me ba-

"He does." They once again all said in unison.

"I'm serious, guys!" You whined childishly.

"And we're serious too! I mean think about it, he always walks with you and he defends you all the time!" Yumi said, a slight swoon in her voice.

"Wait what? Defends me all the time? He only helped me once."

"No, that's not true, you're just never there." Hayashi-chan cut in. "Whenever he hears some guys talking about you in a way he doesn't like, he gets super mad, like, really pissed."

You were silent, taking in and registering what she just said. "Well..that's not a for sure sign that he likes me. We'll just have to see, I guess. I'll play it cool as best as I can." You shrugged, sighing in slight defeat.

Crushes are always such a hassle. They can be fun and exciting, but the anxiousness of not knowing how someone feels about you always kinda sucks. Most times crushes end up just being phases anyway, and honestly for your sake, you hoped this one was a phase.

The fifty minute lunch period was soon over, leaving you bored once again in your math class. It was pretty trash having to go from fun lunchtime to boring math, but whatever, that's life. You always sat right up front and to the far left side by the window. You had to be in the front in all your classes because it helped you focus and see better. You hated having to peer through all these different people just to see what's on the board.

At some point in the middle of class a crumbled piece of paper fell onto your desk, right on top of your binder. You looked around with furrowed brows, seeing no one looking suspicious in any way, before opening the paper.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day had come around, Tuesday. It was officially four days into the month of October, and the weather's been much cooler now.

Kazutora noticed you approaching him in the hallway, which left him a bit surprised seeing as he usually comes and finds you. He didn't mind it though.

"Hey Kazi." You greeted him with a small smile. "What's up?" He looked down at you with a little grin. He liked that you weren't afraid to call him by his nickname in school anymore. You used to always save it for when you both were alone or walking home together.

"Uhh, so I actually won't be able to walk home with you today." You mutter, fiddling around with the hem of your skirt.

"Huh?" His brows furrowed.

"Yeah, one of my classmates asked to hang out with me at this park after school." You looked up at him with an apologetic tone.

Wait wait wait, what? Kazutora figured he must be trippin', 'cause did he just hear you say a classmate asked you to the park with them? Yesterday, the crumpled note you received in math class had been an invitation. It wasn't often someone from school offered to hang out with you, so you figured why not? Could be fun, who knows?

"Oh? Who is it?" He tilted his head to the side inquisitively.

You started to get a little nervous. His tone was absolutely not matching the look on his face. He sounded normal as usual, but his eyes looked like there was hellfire behind them.

"He's in my math class. He's really nice so I didn't wanna say no." You skillfully avoided saying who it was, and made sure to add the fact that he's a nice guy, hoping that would somehow make Kazutora feel better about hanging with someone else. From the outside, Kazutora had a pretty composed demeanor, but on the inside he was lighting the whole school on fire. Your words rang loudly in his ears, repeating over and over again.

He's really nice Didn't wanna say no In my math class Really nice

He...it's a he, and he's nice?! So nice, allegedly, that you felt you couldn't say no to him. Just so nice in fact, that you went and chose him over Kazutora. Who is this kid? Where the hell did he get the balls to ask to hang out with you of all the girls in this entire school?! Did he not know you always walked with him now? He really didn't know he'd called dibs on you, like almost a month ago?

"Nice, huh? You like him or somethin'?" He asked as cooly as he could manage, raising a brow.

"Well I mean, I like him but not like that, you know? He's sweet though, and it seems like he's pretty shy." You shrugged, trying to reiterate that your classmate really is a nice guy...again. You'd went and spoke to him for a bit after class, wanting to make sure the note was actually meant for you. He seemed genuinely kind, so why wouldn't you say yes?

It took every fiber of Kazutora's being to not clench his jaw in annoyance. Isn't this just peachy? You both might as well be two peas in a pod, running off into the sunset being shy and sweet together. He didn't like this at all, not even a little. He hated how it made him feel, imagining you being someone else's princess, even though the whole school already knows you to be his own princess.

Kazutora was jealous...as fuck, but he'd never admit that out loud. He hummed in response to you, nodding his head slowly.

"We can walk together tomorrow though, ok? Both to school and back; I promise!" You gave him another one of those sickeningly sweet smiles, placing a hand on his arm. In just that moment he was calm again, looking down at your hand sealing the promise you made to him. Then as soon as your hand left and you told him "I'll see you later" in that silky voice, walking down the hall to wherever you were going, the jealousy came crashing right back in.

He spent the entire rest of the day agonizing over you and whoever it was you'd be spending time with after school. It was causing physical pain at this point not knowing which kid it was in your grade that had the guts to go for you.

Shy my ass.... He thought to himself bitterly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At the end of the day, Yamagishi had come to your locker just as he said he would. As you both exited the building, all you heard were whispers and murmurs about why you weren't walking with Kazutora today, and if the two of you broke up. You ignored it, talking about how the day went with him.

Yamagishi really was a sweet guy. As soon as a conversation about something he's into came up, he'd go on and on about it, the nervousness completely out the window.

He took you to a nice public park. It was really beautiful, the autumn leaves were all kinds of burgundy, orange, and yellow shades, some fallen on the path creating this ethereal effect. There were so many people walking around here, some couples and some groups of friends doing the same thing as you and Yamagishi, walking around leisurely after school.

"I've never been here before; this is really nice!" You beamed, speed walking over to the lake in the center of the park. The park was built around the body of water, cute metal plates of the different species of fish in the water circled around the whole perimeter of the lake.

"Yeah, I like to come here pretty often and do homework. It's really cool-looking this time of year." He chuckled shyly, joining your side by the water. He was so glad you liked it here. He'd spent days trying to think of where he could take you to hang out where he could finally tell you how he feels about you. His friends had been hassling him for months telling him if he doesn't do it soon someone else'll come along and beat him to the punch and he'll regret it forever.

"Thanks for bringing me here." You smile at him sweetly, before turning your attention back to the fish swimming around aimlessly in the water. Yamagishi blushed hard, his cheeks turning deep pink as he looked at your face. You look so pretty standing there with such a peaceful expression, the wind brushing past the little coils in your updo. He loves how you always have such cool hairstyles, and you always make your uniform match your own personal style. Your skin is so clear and looks even softer, too. Then your eyes, that foreign shape and the way they always seem like they're sparkling, he loved it. He swallowed hard, balling his fists up in his pockets as he tries to build the courage to do what he brought you here to do.

"Um-

"Ooo look! They have a hojicha latte stand! You want some?!" You beamed abruptly, pointing to the right behind Yamagishi. There was a small line of people, all waiting for a hot cup of hojicha (Note: Hojicha lattes are a tea latte made from Japanese roasted green tea leaves~).

"O-oh, I can get you some if you want?" He offered sweetly, a bit disappointed at his spoiled chance. He'll find another opening though, for sure.

"No no, you don't have to! I can-

"I want to." He cut you off, giving you the cutest smile, "Wait here, I'll be right back!" He called over his shoulder, already jogging over to the slightly growing hojicha line. You laughed lightly to yourself, waiting patiently for him to come back with your drink.

He came back fairly quickly, handing you your drink. The both of you walked around in a tranquil silence, at least, it was tranquil for you. Yamagishi on the other hand was freaking out mentally, completely shook that one of his previously wildest dreams was actually unfolding in real life right now. He'd feel like an absolute failure if he went home without confessing to you, he has to do it, at least really try! Maybe after he confesses he could hold your hand like a couple. Maybe even kiss!

"Oh, you know what, I heard the school is gonna be doing a really nice autumn festival in Novem- You cut yourself off, noticing some random tall dude aggressively bump into Yamagishi's shoulder, spilling his drink all along his arm and part of the front of his shirt. His face contorted in pain as the hot beverage made contact with his skin through his clothes. Your face scrunched up in anger and shock, your head snapping behind you to glare at the guy who did this. He was super tall, probably a little over six feet, wearing some all red outfit.

"Hey! You just made him spill his drink all over his shirt! What is wrong with you, you don't see all this space to walk around?!" You ranted, gesturing towards Yamagishi's stained shirt. The tall guy turned around, an annoyed look on his face.

Yamagishi's eyes widened in horror, immediately recognizing the symbol on the guys outfit. He knew a lot about all kinds of things gang related, so it didn't take him long to register that this was none other than Osanai, the current leader of Moebius.

"Huh?" He says stupidly.

"hUuuH?", You mocked him, becoming more annoyed by the second, "Apologize to him!" You demand, your demeanor completely serious, stepping up towards the gang leader boldly.

"Why doesn't your little boyfriend speak up for himself, huh? You got a problem with me, pussy?" He asked smugly, looking past you and straight at a petrified Yamagishi. You scoffed, appalled at how rude he was being.

"N-no sir!" Yamagishi frantically answered before turning and grabbing your hand, "Come on, we should-

"Well how 'bout this, I got a problem with you. Don't talk to him like that!" You said fiercely, taking your hand out of Yamagishi's, walking over and shoving a hand in Osanai's chest. You weren't exactly sure why you were reacting like this, maybe there was some unmanaged anger about that situation with that rapist weeks ago that still lingered. Maybe you were tired of guys acting like they can just do whatever they want and get away with it, picking on people who weren't as strong. Highly likely both. The tall guy bursted out into laughter, looking down at you like you were an ant.

Suddenly, he snatched you by the front of your shirt, making your heart drop as you yelped. "You've got some guts, girl. You realize who you're talkin' to?" He asked menacingly, he was so close your noses were nearly touching.

"Let go." You gritted out angrily, standing your ground.

"Don't hurt her! Let her go!" Yamagishi cried out, pulling you out of his grip and shifting himself in front of you.

"Hey, we got a problem here, boss?"

Another boy, tall, with a friend both dressed the same as Osanai strolled over casually. They looked intimidating, just like this one who started everything.

"Yeah, seems this little miss wants some trouble." He smirked deviously, talking over his shoulder. "Oh yeah?" The other less taller one spoke, chewing some gum lazily. Your heart was pounding, pumping both fear and high levels of anger through your veins.

"If you want a problem, I can hand you a problem!" You snapped from behind Yamagishi's shoulder. The tallest one snickered, then pushed Yamagishi out of the way like he was nothing, making him fall to the ground. Osanai gripped your jaw tightly, two fingers forcing your lips to pucker out in an embarrassing way. Then, he nodded towards Yamagishi, letting the other two stomp him out right in front of you. "You shoulda just kept your mouth shut, bitch. Now you can watch your punk ass boyfriend get-

You cut him off with a hard slap, using your own hot hojicha cup to hit him in the face with. His head slightly turned to your left, eyes wide as the drink spilled along him and your own arm. Osanai let go, letting you stumble back while panting heavily. "To think I was gonna let you off the hook." He chuckled dryly. Your heart dropped. What the hell kind of situation is this?! You can't fight him, Yamagishi sure as hell can't fight, you're stuck. Your whole body was shaking, hands trembling just like six weeks ago with that college aged creep. You didn't wanna be hopeless like back then, you wanted to fight for yourself, protect yourself. You balled your fists at your sides, preparing for a fight.

You heard Yamagishi yell for you to just run away, but fuck that. It'd be terrible for you to leave him. Clearly no one else around had the guts to help y'all, so you'll just have to do what you can.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Welp....the fight didn't last very long, nor did it go well for you. Yamagishi had somehow managed to weasel himself away from the two guys attacking him, placing himself between you and Osanai just in time to take the punch he was about to throw at you. His body fell to the side and hit the ground like he didn't weigh a thing. You could tell Osanai was a fighter for real, he had insane technique. Just as Yamagishi fell out cold, Osanai readied another punch, this one finally managing to hit you directly in the face. You fell down right with Yamagishi, wailing out in pain like a baby and cupping the left side of your face gently. Osanai and the others threatened to do worse if we ever tried them again, then left on their merry way like nothing happened.

The two of you got back to your house late in the night. Your mom was fast asleep so you were able to sneak him into your room without waking her up. You handled the both of your wounds gently, taking the most time on Yamagishi as he received the worst of it. He apologized to you over and over and over, tears flowing down his face like a waterfall. He felt horrific that he couldn't save you, and felt pathetic even more at the fact that he barely even did much at all. You were braver than he was in his opinion. You held your ground against a man while all Yamagishi wanted to do was get outta there as fast as possible. He felt like he didn't deserve someone as strong as you, and he especially didn't think he deserved a girl he can't even protect.

"You don't have to keep apologizing. Honestly, I should've just listened to you; we should've ran away or something. Neither one of us knows how to really fight, and that guy seemed like he was a boxer or some kinda professional." You mumbled, gently placing some circular shaped bandaids on his arms. He frowned, not really feeling any better about the situation. You let out a deep sigh, placing the first aid supplies down, looking him in the eyes. "I-I couldn't do anything. I wanted to save you, but I'm not strong like those guys." He stuttered, frantically wiping away at his continuous tears. Your heartstrings pulled at the sight of him, making you tear up your own self.

"You're not necessarily as strong or super tall like them, but you did stick up for me. You defended me the best that you could, and I appreciate that a lot. You're way better than them, Yamagishi. They're physical strength is all they have so they just go around hurting people to make them feel better about themselves. But you have more strength than them by a long shot, 'cause your brave and respectful; compassionate. You got a gold heart." You smiled softly, hugging him from the side gently.

Yamagishi's heart skipped probably five beats in a row. He couldn't believe you still thought highly of him even after what happened. He melted into the hug, slowly resting his head on your shoulder. You patted his back a bit, pulling away from the hug. He took the small window of silence between the two of you to do what he planned to do this whole time.

"I-..I really like you-

You cut him off, leaning forward and planting a small, sweet kiss on his cheek. Yamagishi gasped, stiffening up instantly as he fell dead silent. His heart was racing ten miles a second.

"I know." You speak softly, "But, I like you more as a friend."

"Oh.." His heart sank, eyes cast downward in disappointment. As fast as his dream came, it dissipated into mist, drifting away rapidly in the wind.

"You'll find someone that loves you, and when you do, you'll make her really happy! I know that for sure." You assure, giving him a light smile. It was hard for you, turning down such a cute sweetheart like him. Honestly it worried you about your own little crush situation with Kazutora.

You very well may be joining Yamagishi in the unrequited love parade soon.

🩵A/N: Thanks so much for reading y'all, and I hope you guys are enjoying the fluff section of the story so far! Please like and reblog and whatever else lol, love y'all🧚🏾‍♀️